Foot Fetish

Since I last left off I've been doing the doctor circuit. Following numerous recommendations from my running teammates I went to see Dr. Larry Lembo, the GOD of runners and all athletic related injuries. I have to mention his name because he is THE ONE. The one who has identified what is going on and what to do about it. Apparently in addition to my plantar fasciitis I have tightness in the posterior tibial tendon.
He has been doing an amazing massaging technique called A.R.T. or Active response technique. It hurt like hell the first time but as time progresses the pain is bearable. It's like a deep tissue massage but in an area that is as tight as a rubber band. Things are going along well and I was able increase my distance into the double digits. Ok 10 miles, but that's double digits!!

Then I go and trip over the stupid vacuum cleaner that I neglected to put away. It was a stupid accident that sent me to the emergency room. I walk in and they ask what's wrong I say "my toe is broken." Young doc fresh outta med school comes in and says, "I don't think it's broken but we'll take and x-ray." Now I know if it's broken there's nothing that can be done but I NEED confirmation to be sure. So the young doctor, did I mention kinda cute but not in a Dr. McDreamy way, comes back and says, "It's fractured." "No shit Sherlock" I say. I tell him I'm training for my sixth marathon. He tapes it up and tells me no running for two weeks. I cry, he leaves. Stupid young doctor has no bedside manner. I'll spare you more foot photos. Let's just say it was big, blue, purple & painful!

So here it is 5 days after the accident. I've been crosstraining like nobody's business. I can bike and crank out some mean miles on the eliptical. Confession time. This morning I taped up the toe, put on heavy socks, tied the sneaks on tight and went for a 4 mile run. It felt soooo good. I'm thinking it's intervention time! Tomorrow I'm back on the eliptical for an hour. I realized I absolutely need the endorphin high on a daily basis. I can't survive without it. Lazy is NOT in my vocabulary. Maybe my sister in law is right, maybe I am ADD.

Bitch mode

Yes I've been MIA. I had no idea it has been this long! I've joined my running club's race team right after the New Jersey marathon. I even placed first in my age group at the last 8k a few wks ago. Then (cue mystery movie music) my foot started giving me hell. Yeah HELL! It was just a bit achy then a little pain, achy, pain, achy, SEVERE pain. With two weeks left before I start training for the Marine Corps Marathon I called my doctor in a panic. I insisted on an x-ray because I was sure it was a stress fracture, without a doubt. X-ray showed nothing. The internet is a cruel, cruel world. I started researching a myriad of ailments that it could be. I finally got in to see a podiatrist who said it was simply bursitis with plantar fasciitis and achilles tendonitis. What the hell? Could I possibly get another ailment ending in "itis?"

P.S. Two cortisone injections later, twice weekly physical therapist visits, kinesio taping, prescription anti-inflammatories, lots of tears, some alchohol and it's not healing as fast as I want it to. Currently I have pressed pause on my training plan. I'm going to rest the foot. NO RUNNING for the whole week then re-access my game plan. I can sell my bib if I need to. There are many people who desperately want to run MCM. So needless to say I'm not a very happy girl lately. I realized I NEED to run. It's my addiction. It's my high. It's my crack/cocaine, cheesecake, vodka, and even therapist. At least I can walk right? Here's a parting shot of my foot taped up w/ kinesio tape which I swear helps immensely!! Pray for my family right now..

The photos I shelled out a fortune for.

Here's a photo collage of how it all went down at the marathon.

As you can see early on I'm looking (and feeling) strong. A few raindrops. It's all good!



Then it starts to rain, hard. Legs are starting to get heavy at this point. Look at the stress in the shoulders and arms! Here I am in the final stretch to the finish.
The "Living on a prayer" shot. No I'm not smiling. My face was frozen that way for the last two miles.

Statistics-the big picture

I love to look at the overall picture after the race. I'll admit I still occasionally press rewind in my head but the way I see it it's good for future races. Here's the breakdown of my stats in this marathon.

Chip Time 3:56:20
Gun Time 3:57:02
Pace 9:01
Place 599/1726
Gender Place 144/692
Age Group Place F35-39: 27/121

This always makes me feel better!

Next up- The first 5k I ever ran revisited. All I asked for on Mother's day was to be able to run this race. I ran it in 2004 and finished in 27:18. I'm looking to shave 5 whole minutes off this sucker.

ETA 5/10 - Finished 5k in 23:41. Third place age group!

Soggy day at the Jersey Shore

Far better is it to dare mighty things, to win glorious triumphs, even though checkered by failure...than to rank with those poor spirits who neither enjoy much nor suffer much, because they live in a gray twilight that knows not victory nor defeat.- Theodore Roosevelt

Yesterday I ran the New Jersey Marathon in Long Branch. I had three goals for myself. To finish in 3:48, to finish in 3:50 and finally to have a respectable finish. Since I was babying my back & hip last week to finish was my main goal.

I woke up feeling GREAT! So great I didn't think I needed to massage my back & hip from the dreaded sciatica issues I had last week but I did because I knew I should. Ritually I go outside before I get dressed to feel the weather. It was overcast & drizzly. No major rain. I became friendly with a three guys in the lobby and we decided to share a cab to the start. The baggage claim & some bathrooms are inside a hotel on the boardwalk. It was nice to stay warm while eating, stretching, & prepping. Oddly I had no anxiety before the start like I normally do. Today was going to be a true test and I was prepared.

After nervously seaching for my 3:50 pacer I found him. The guy, Tom, was 6'3, hard to miss! I informed Tom that I planned to stay with him the whole time. How many times has he heard that? I waited with the group anxious to start. The race was supposed to start at 7:30 am. At that time it was still just light drizzle and 51 degrees. Perfect conditions. For whatever reasons we didn't actually start until 7:55.

I have to say I didn't really sightsee much during this race. I just focused on Tom, my pacer, in the orange shirt. I mainly tucked behind him most of the time. I felt great going into mile 9 when the hip started to get sore. I tried to focus on smaller strides because this seems to help. This was a really flat course with two tiny inlines at mile 9 & 18. This was also a double loop course. The first half merges with the half marathon finishers. We continued on the course for the second loop. I was kinda wishing I looked around more so I could recall markers but it didn't matter at this point. It started to rain a bit harder by now. I stayed with Tom up to mile 18. I grabbed an orange wedge as I passed the aid stations and sucked on it. For some reason I felt a bit lightheaded. Worried I held back a bit. Tom was still about 20 feet ahead of me while I tried to access my fuzziness. It was at this point that I started to think "am I hitting the wall?" I've never hit the wall before! I soon guesstimated that I did not hit the wall. It was pouring torrential rains at this point and my clothes were drenched. Being soaked led to cold. My hands & fingers were numb. My legs heavy. I couldn't even feel my fingers to reach into my pockets for shot blocks. I decided I didn't need them if I couldn't get them. I also felt a blister on the ball of my foot at this time so I was trying not to apply too much pressure on it as I ran. Going into mile 20 I did the math in my head and knew a BQ was still within reach if I pressed on. Unfortunately my legs were so heavy they weren't moving as fast as I wanted them too. I started falling behind my pace group. I could now see Tom about 200-300 feet ahead. I just wanted to keep him within sight no matter what. My time at mile 23 was 3:23:47. Fuzzily I did the math and figured I needed to run sub 9's for the next 3.2 miles to qualify. It was pouring, I was drenched, my limbs were frozen. I decided at that point to haul butt to mile 24 then readjust my game plan from there. I hit mile 24 at almost 3:33. I knew I didn't have it in me anymore and just wanted to quit. I could attempt to haul my butt to the finish and barely qualify by 2-3 minutes but I decided to enjoy the last few miles. I ran hard but did not look at my watch anymore. I turned off my Ipod and enjoyed the cheering crowds & cowbells. My name was on my bib and for the first time I was happy to hear people cheering for me. One man yelled, "You're a sub 4 marathoner Fran!!" I just smiled at him. Years ago all I wanted was a sub 4 marathon. Here I was on my way to my second sub 4.

I crossed the finish line at 3:56:19 according to my watch. (Official results-3:56:20.) When I crossed the finish line and stopped my knees buckled. Someone caught me. Thank God! A young man held me up as they rushed a wheelchair over to me. I screamed, "No, I don't need that, I just need a few minutes here!" I just kept repeating, "give me a minute, give me a minute." After about two minutes I stood up straight and started to walk. The same guy who held me up walked with me a few feet. I knew I was fine and told him so. I don't know if I thanked him and that bothers me still. Thank you angel at the finish line! They gave out medals & hats at the finish. No heat sheets because it's not environmentally safe. I hurried over to the food tent. I wasn't hungry but knew I should eat/drink something. There were serving hot food but it was gone. I was told to wait for it. I was so cold and wet I just wanted to go back to baggage claim and change into my dry clothes.

Even when I finally changed I was shivering uncontrollably. I went to purchase a cup of coffee to try to warm up. The cashier commented on how I was shivering and didn't let me pay for it the coffee. I called a cab to take me back to the hotel. I waited 40 minutes for the cab, shivering the whole time. The hotel I stayed at had a 4pm check out just for marathoners. When I got back to my room I took the longest HOT shower ever. It was spiritually & physically cleansing.
After that I got a good look at the blister on my foot. If you saw the movie "Run Fatboy Run" you saw the part where the guy got a huge blister on his foot. Mine was almost as big! I now have three black toes too.

After all the tears I've straightened up and realized how well I did despite my injury and the weather. It is my best marathon time to date. I was mainly upset because I felt like I needed to prove to my family that hard work pays off. It does eventually. Going back out there and trying again is a more valuable lesson.

When I came home everyone greeted me with great big hugs & kisses. That's quite the reward if you ask me.

Aspire 10k- Short & sweet

Saturday morning was cold, windy & drizzly. Yeah perfect running weather huh? This was a hilly one. Thank goodness I've been running hills even though Jersey is gonna be flat. My darling 15yr old son came along to take pictures of runners for my running club. He was positioned at the top of mile five. The kid was out there over an hour and took 600 pictures! It was cold, his fingers were frozen and he was shivering but he stayed there and took phenomonal pictures. He did a great job. That's my kid, determined!

I set a goal of 49 minutes and felt I needed to redeem myself from the 15k debacle a few weeks ago. I started out way to fast when I hit mile one at 7:20. Second mile at at 7:29 and third at 7:23. I knew I needed to slow down to avoid disaster. Yet I couldn't figure out why I was so fast. As hard as it is I tried to slow down. Problem was I started setting my sights on people to pass. I passed about 20 people heading into mile 5. For some reason the hills were my friend this day. Odd how that happens. I hauled b-u-t-t up every hill. No rest for the weary. Mile 5 was my slowest but seeing my son at the top of the hill made it worth it. After I hammed it up for him I headed down to the finish. Finish time- 48:21. That, my friend, is a PR!

It was also the validation I needed at this time. Hard work freakin' pays off! Whatdya know? 20 miler on Easter Sunday then we're bringing it on home!

It ain't over til....

....this chick runs Jersey!!

Week #13 done! My old body let me run 52.4 miles last week. Two more weeks and I start winding down. It's sort of depressing to think about it. 18 weeks of hard work, commitment, sweat & tears and it all comes down to one moment. The one defining moment. The make or break moment. Ah, I'm not getting emotional so soon. Shake it off!!

50 miles this week with a 10k thrown in on Saturday. Bring it!!

Our Deepest Fear

“Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate. Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure. It is our light, not our darkness that most frightens us. We ask ourselves, Who am I to be brilliant, gorgeous, talented, fabulous? Actually, who are you not to be? You are a child of God. Your playing small does not serve the world. There is nothing enlightened about shrinking so that other people won't feel insecure around you. We are all meant to shine, as children do. We were born to make manifest the glory of God that is within us. It's not just in some of us; it's in everyone. And as we let our own light shine, we unconsciously give other people permission to do the same. As we are liberated from our own fear, our presence automatically liberates others.”

-by Marianne Williamson from A Return To Love: Reflections on the Principles of A Course in Miracles

The Crud still lives

I can't even explain what is going on and why I can't seem to shake this crud. Granted it's been a rough winter and I've done the majority of training outdoors I'm still sick. Sinus pressure, ear pain, ear ringing and chest congestion. Those are the symptoms. The diagnosis? The crud.

So yesterday I dragged my cruddy butt out to Central Park for the Colon Cancer 15k. As I had posted last week this was going to be my "shining moment." No I didn't use those words exactly. If you read between the lines you got it though. I got there early so I could find a precious parking spot. I think it's easier to get mugged than find a parking spot in Manhattan! Anyways half an hour after driving around I found a spot. I ran to the park because I knew it was so early I would be able to find a clean port-o-potty. My plan? To stay warm and confined as long as I can. Found a brand spankin' new suite and stationed myself for half an hour. The odd thing is I didn't even go to the bathroom the whole time! Just huddled and stayed warm. I did have a change of clothes in my bag and decided to go with the capri's, tank top & shell jacket since it was 40 degrees at the start.

I headed over to the start area 10 minutes before and thought warm thoughts. The start was rough because it was so crowded. I felt like I was just jogging with a couple hundred people for the first mile. I finally broke through the crowd and was on my own. All was good for the first four miles. My lungs weren't happy the legs were the only ones getting attention so they decided to get in on the action. It's hard to cough up heavy mucus when you're trying to race. From there on the hacking, spitting and labored breathing began. I'm no quitter so I kept pushing myself. I'll admit I wanted to quit a few times. If only I could stop and spit the dam lung out already! I thought what if my lung collapsed right here on the course? The fight between me & my lungs continued for the remainder of the hilly race. It wasn't easy that's for sure! I finished in 1:17:45. I'd like to think that if it weren't for the crud I would've finished in my projected 1:15 or better but come on, that's a good time considering I fought hard for it!

The story of my life. I have to fight hard for everything!

Can you take me Higher?

Higher than 57.3 miles? That's what I ran last week. My highest week to date. That included a 22 miler that felt so good I didn't want to stop because I knew if I did my legs would start to seize. That is also the last time this cycle I'll run that much. I'll run over 50 miles but not that high. Physically I feel great. Sore, no pain. This is GOOD! This is AMAZING! 46 days left! I'm getting to the "hurry up & get here so I can get it done" stage!

This weekend I'm racing The Colon Cancer 15k. My first 15k ever! I've ran every distance under the sun. Gonna have to add that distance to my charm bracelet of course!
I'm gonna put it all out there for this race. This race will show me how far I've come this training cycle. I'm looking forward to it!

Meaning of Life?

I know, I know! It's been a while! I have no good excuse. Training is going well. I'm struggling with other things right now. Mainly life. The value, meaning and importance of life. Not to be a downer but in the past month there have been many deaths. One person passed that I never met and that affected me the most. Little Cody Johnson passed away at the tender age of six. I didn't know him. Never met him. I learned about him through Runners World forums. An unusually tight knit internet family. His Dad, Mickey a runner, has been posting about him for years. His blog was one I checked regulary hoping that one day there would be a "remission" post. It never happened. What did happen was I among hundreds of other fortunate people got to know Cody through his father's eyes. I learned the daily struggles the whole family faced over the past two years. On a daily basis I laughed, cried and prayed for this family. I know nothing of the pain this family is going through. The anger going through their veins. The siblings struggling with the loss. The only positive is that Cody is no longer in pain. Pain no child should ever know. Not to make any other deaths seem minute compared to his death but he didn't get to live his life. He didn't get to go to his prom, go to college, have a family and enjoy his grandchildren. God has a reason. I don't know what the hell it is but it better be good!

Rest In Peace Little Man. ~http://deckapes.blogspot.com/

Where I'm at

A month ago I got a dreaded ear infection. Went to the doctor, took my meds and it cleared up for a few weeks anyway. Since then I've had ringing in my right ear. Sometimes it keeps me awake at night. With all the wonderful internet medical information sites I researched ringing in the ears and found that it goes away in time. So I chose to live with it for the time being.

Sunday I ran 21 miles in the pouring, freezing rain. When I came home my limbs were frozen in place. I showered, put my pajamas on and decided to just spend the rest of the day home waiting for pneumonia to set in but oh so proud for finishing 21 miles in those conditions. Well worth it! Not really. Monday morning I started getting ear pain again. I really don't want to go to the doctor so I make excuses. By Wednesday morning I'm in enough pain to make the phone call to the doctor. The next available appointment is in 1 1/2 hours. I have to run 14 miles that morning. So what do I do? I run 7 miles to the doctor's office see the doctor and promptly run 7 miles home. Now that's what I call multi-tasking! So I looked a little crazy in the waiting room. I tried to keep my distance so no one would have to suffer from my body odor! Of course my doctor has nasal samples for me to take with me on my journey. It must've looked like I was carrying my lunch!

So where I'm at is a state of lunacy as you can see and midway through this training cycle. Right smack in the heart of training!

~For my dear friend Paulette~

Footprints

One night I had a dream--
I dreamed I was walking along the beach with the Lord
and across the sky flashed scenes from my life.
For each scene I noticed two sets of footprints,
one belonged to me and the other to the Lord.
When the last scene of my life flashed before me,
I looked back at the footprints in the sand.
I noticed that many times along the path of my life,
there was only one set of footprints.
I also noticed that it happened at the very lowest
and saddest times in my life.
This really bothered me and I questioned the Lord about it.
"Lord, you said that once I decided to follow you,
you would walk with me all the way,
but I have noticed that during the most troublesome times in my life
there is only one set of footprints.
"I don't understand why in times when I needed you most,
you should leave me."
The Lord replied, "My precious, precious child,
I love you and I would never, never leave you
during your times of trial and suffering.
"When you saw only one set of footprints,
it was then that I carried you."

Stay strong P. You WILL get through this.

My new upgrade

For Valentine's day Tom gave me moolah to buy new sneakers. I love how he listens when I casually mention I'm going to need new ones soon. So sweet! So here they are in all their glory. Brand spanking new Mizuno Wave Creation 10's. An upgrade from the Wave Creation 9's that were pink & orange. Notice the orange and silver. Silver like a bullet.They feel and smell better than the pics by the way!

Six miles tomorrow morning in these new beauties! Ahhhh!!

Don't Stop Believin'

I know it's been a whole week since I posted last.
Here's the deal. As I increase the miles in training I start to have more self doubt. I don't understand why but it happens with every training cycle. This week I successfully ran 51 miles with no physical problems. My crazy little brain, however, chooses to have a pity party. This is only compounded by comments from people who see me "running everywhere." If only I could be invisible when I run!

So this week's pity party included a little sobfest. What the heck get it over with right? For my own purposes I'm writing about it to remind me of the drama I choose to put myself through. What makes me think that I can qualify for Boston? Yeah I finished Steamtown in less than four hours but that was all downhill! NJ is flat. I'm going to have to dig deep and maintain my pace with no gravitational pull. I'm only getting older and not breaking any world records anytime soon. I'll probably finish within minutes, or worse, seconds of qualifying time. If I finish this training cycle with no problems there are still variables on race day that could affect my performance. Blah, blah, blah. See the pattern dummy? Again, this is what I choose to put myself through.

Thank goodness for my trusty Ipod. Steve Perry breaks my insanity to remind me-


Then it all comes back to me. I've run 4 marathons and countless races. I've placed as recently as November. A 7:29 pace is nothing to be ashamed of even if it's only for 3.1 miles. Realistically I know I'll never maintain that pace for a whole marathon but I put it all out there anyway. I've been through hell & back in my 39 yrs. I know I can do this. I do believe in myself. I have a wonderful family that believes in me. A great husband who reminds me that I can do it when I lose faith. I'm only out to prove it to myself. Everyone else is already impressed and in awe of my accomplishments. It's time I am too!

Open letter to the Girl in the Blue Shirt

Dear Girl in blue shirt,

About halfway into my 13 mile run yesterday you passed me at the turn around. It was early in the morning and there are very few runners on that long desolate road as it is. Dozens of bikers but few runners. I've only seen 4 runners since I've run that road. But you, you're different. You wizzed past me with great form. A stride like no other I've seen. You were in "the zone." You were also fast! You ran past me at the point that I started feeling aches & pains. I was focusing on those aches and pains and mentally tearing myself up. Then our paths converged. Suddenly I felt that fire in my belly. "I'm going to catch up to the girl in the blue shirt" is all I kept thinking. I amped up my pace trying to remind myself this is an LSD not a race. No matter I wanted to catch up to you. Even if I kept an even pace at your heels I didn't care. I managed to stay within a quarter mile of you for about 5 miles. At each winding turn I dug in deeper hoping at the next bend I'd be even closer to you. The inclines were ahead of us and I thought for sure you'd slow down. You just kept me going. Then there was a fork in the road. I though is this where we diverge or I continue the chase. Unfortunately my road takes me back to Mayberry, your's back into another town. So long Girl in blue shirt!

I do want to thank you for the challenge. Thank you for diverting my attention even just for 5 miles. Thank you for pushing me a little harder. Thank you for reminding me I could work harder. I hope we meet again, very soon.

First Ski Trip of 2009

Cost of New Retainer = $340

Cost of Speeding Ticket = $150
Memories (& laughs) with Family = PRICELESS

It was quick. It was fun. It was NOT uneventful. In keeping with tradition we did not avoid disaster. All I have to say is keep a very close eye on your child's retainer when they wrap it in a napkin. Visualize Tom & I weeding through hotel garbage bags looking for a pink & green retainer. Oh the JOYS of parenting! After rummaging through bags of garbage, with the wonderful staff at the hotel of course, we didn't find it. So we have to suck up the cost of a new retainer for the child. Add that to the cost of a speeding ticket I got for doing 70mph in a 50mph. Guilty as charged. Tom was glad I was driving and not him! A friend suggested I should've told the cop "You think that was fast? You should see me run!"

All in all we did have a great time. The kids love skiing. They are so good at it and can't wait to ski again.

On the running front. I did manage to get my long run of 17+ miles in on Monday after we got back. Kinda brutal after skiing all weekend but you know I got it done! Cutback week that I'm calling "catch up" week since I need to get back on track.

Manhattan Half Marathon

Central Park 8am.
Temperature 14 degrees.
4500 runners.

I guess 500 people stayed home tucked in bed under warm blankets where the other 4500 belonged. Funny it didn't feel that cold. That's because after about 10 minutes of standing in the corral waiting to start your extremities go numb. It's an odd feeling. You're body is in motion but you can't quite feel it. You know the feeling when your foot falls asleep then you try to walk on it? That's kinda what it feels like but with no feeling.

So I didn't set any goals for this half today. I had to run 15 miles total so I was just going to run 1 mile before and 1 after. I got there in plenty of time to do that but refused to get out of the warm car and get to the start line. I also spent a lot of time debating what to wear, what not to wear, etc. I finally headed over to the start line at 7:45. Race started at 8am. The first mile I was seriously mad I didn't wear my ski mask. I spent a lot of time trying to figure out which was more numb, my face or my toes. Everything pretty much thawed and feeling was restored by mile 3. Alright, now we're having fun! So I trudged along with no problems after that. It was funny seeing people with icicles hanging off of their hair from the sweat! Crazy! At the water tables the water was frozen on the tables with icicles hanging off them. Poor volunteers out there today!

So back to trudging along and who do I pass around mile 9? Hoda Kotb from the today show and breast cancer survivor. Read her story here-http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/26967472/ She was just running along on the opposite lane for non-racers with a huge smile on her face. I thought to myself if I pass her again I'm gonna yell out to get rid of Mario Cantone as guest host. That guy's voice just makes me want to jump off a ledge. Don't you love when you get distractions like this during a race? Before I knew it I was coming into the 13th mile. On my Ipod Beyonce decides she's gonna bring me home. "All the single ladies, put your hands up. Oh, oh, oh!" Love that song! Thanks Gabygoo!

13.1 miles in 1:56:04. Not too shabby for not racing it! I cross the finish line, remove my chip and turn around for two more miles. When I'm done I get my chocolate chip bagel (cause that's the real reason I dragged my butt 25 miles from my warm bed to run in 14 degrees and might I add had about 30% less chocolate chips this year!) and head back to my warm car. Hoping of course it's still there. It is New York City afterall.

To run or not to run, that is the question.

Sunday Morning weather? 17°F Feels Like 7°F.

Not bad if you aren't still recovering from a cold and ear infection. Fortunately I've had frostbite in the past so I know the signs & symptoms should I have any.

Supposedly there are 5000 registered runners for this half marathon. These die hard NYRR's will be there no doubt. If only 4,899 runners didn't show up I may have a chance to place. Hey a girl can dream right?

You talkin' to ME?

I often run past this church at the beginning of my runs. In the past I've seen running references on the sign. This is the most recent one. I sometimes wonder if the pastor is trying to speak to me. I mean come on, who else runs past this church? I don't care what Pastor Bob says. I'm running-ALL THE TIME!

DEDICATION

14.5 miles in a snowstorm. Do I feel like superwoman or what? I have to say that running in snow is akin to running on sand. I have a feeling this is gonna hurt a little bit. 15 wks left to the New Jersey Marathon! After next week I officially start the long runs cause ya know 14.5 ain't long according to Mr. Pfitz!

Baby it's cold outside!

Well not as cold as it has been. 30 degrees beats the 16 degrees we had just 3 days ago. What a difference. Per Pete Pfitzinger's 18/55 plan (18 wks with a 55mile weekly cap) I ran 4 miles today. http://www.roadtoboston.com/djapps/trainingPlans/genPDF/5/displayStartDay/6/planStartDay/6/Miles/schedule.pdf

Tomorrow is my a scheduled "medium" long run of 12 miles. Pfitz doesn't consider it a long run unless it's 17 miles or longer. I have mucho respect for Pfitz. It has definately made me faster. The question is how much faster can I get? I'm gonna tweak this plan to a 60 mile weekly cap. Because going to 70 is just nuts! Wait, I am nuts!

Confessions of a blog stalker

I'm gonna come clean and admit to being a blog whore. Yeah I stalk bloggers, on a daily basis. What is this fascination with blogging I wonder? I'm the person who never journaled or even kept a diary so this should be interesting. For any stalkers who may be interested I'm probably gonna bore your details about my running life. Be prepared. Occasionally I'll throw in some other fun stuff, be prepared as well!