Marathon to Nowhere 2015

On Saturday my running group was scheduled to do a 26 mile training run. This is part of the Galloway method of training and while I understand where the plan is coming from, I'm pretty well convinced that this level of preparation is overkill. Last year I did the 26.2 mile training run because I thought it would be fun to prove to myself that I was tough enough to run a marathon with no other incentive than that I could do it. Sure, it was on the training plan, but I knew deep down I could quit early and be in perfectly good shape to run my scheduled race. This year, it was coming up on the schedule again and while I remained skeptical, most of the others wanted to do the run.

On our long runs earlier in the summer we'd often talk about the 26 mile run. We plotted the best route, we discussed registering for virtual races so we'd get a medal on the big day, we thought about all of the reasons NOT to do it. It loomed large for all of us. As marathon Saturday approached, our group of five had dwindled to three runners: one had family plans in another state and couldn't make the run, one had a bad 23 mile outing and was timid about pushing all the way to 26. Personally, I was seriously considering skipping it. I have a habit of developing hypochondria before marathons. My typical M.O. is to imagine that I have a stress fracture about a week or so before a big event. This time though, I was fretting over a twinge or two I felt in my hip. Could this be the return of the problem I had two summers ago? I have too much on the line for that to happen! As I dug into the recesses of my closet looking for my super deluxe CW-X compression shorts, I seriously considered bagging the run for fear that it would jeopardize my trip to Disneyland for the Dumbo Double Dare one week later. As much as I thought about quitting, on Friday night I filled my hydration belt, gathered up my snacks and went to bed early.

Saturday morning was about as perfect a day as one could hope for when running a marathon in August. It was 54 degrees and chilly when I left my house, so chilly I actually wondered if I should change into something warmer (I didn't!) My hip ailment had disappeared and I chose my cute Skirt Sports skirt over my ugly but functional compression shorts. As I drove to the meeting spot, I started to get excited. Not quite race level excited but I was feeling confident and ready.

I'm lucky to live near a fantastic rails to trails system so we were going to spend the whole day running along the Perkiomen Trail and the Perkiomen Creek. It's a beautiful, green and shady trail and it's a wonderful place to run. Before I knew it, we were 8 miles into the run, refueling at a water fountain and appreciating the gorgeous morning. Things were still looking great at mile 15 when we passed a local convenience store and stopped for a quick hit of air conditioning and snacks. Everyone was in good spirits and as the day heated up we decided to work on keeping our spirits high and agreed that if things got rough we'd stick together. Slow the pace when we had to, take breaks when we had to, just get it done. Time on feet not time on clock. We chatted about books and vacations and sending kids off to college but mostly we talked about how much we were going to enjoy a chocolate milkshake when it was over. (One great thing about parking for your run across the trail from a diner is instant gratification when it's over!)

So what have I learned by running the Marathon to Nowhere? While running that far is never exactly FUN, it is satisfying in the way that only a long, long run can be. For me, who already has a lot of marathons under my belt, I think there is minimal benefit as part of the training plan but for those who are less experienced going the full distance gives them a boost and more time to experiment with nutrition plans. It's no secret that I think running a marathon can change your life and running a marathon when it's not a race builds upon that foundation. Pushing that far when there is nothing at stake takes a level of determination that I wasn't completely convinced that I possessed. I've done it twice now and I still think it's crazy but it won't surprise me if I wind up doing it again next summer. I was wearing a shirt during this run that says "I love running... just not while I'm doing it" and while that can be true for me on a homework run, on the long runs, when I'm out there for hours, I do love every second of it.

Next up: DISNEYLAND!!!!!

Homework Runs

I know that the secret to success in long distance events is doing all the runs in the training cycle. I'm not a runner who is motivated by the clock so my homework isn't so much about tempo runs or hill repeats but more about logging regular weekly miles to build up my base so I can run a lot of races at a comfortable pace. I'm also a little bit unusual in that I tend to really look forward to my super long runs and think of them more as mini adventures. Short runs on the other hand are nothing but homework for me. Something I have to do but seldom want to face even when I know they are good for me and almost always turn out to be rewarding.

I have a pretty good routine with my running partners to meet twice a week after work to get in 4-5 miles and without them I'd find excuses to skip the run more often than not. Last night is a great example: as I mentioned, we're in the middle of a heatwave and temperatures were in the 90s most of the day yesterday. I live in the mid-Atlantic and most days are really humid as well as hot. This was not adding up for great running conditions - especially since our typical Tuesday takes us to Valley Forge National Park and it's five mile, hilly, mostly unshaded loop trail. Blah. The excuse maker in my head looks at those conditions and says "No sane person would run in this. Go home. Use the treadmill or run tomorrow." The committed running partner in me says "They will be waiting for me. They are not wimping out. Just go." And so I went.

Luckily, I have smart friends and one suggested a change of venue to a shady flat trail that runs along the Schuylkill River so things were looking better already.

We started off at a conversational pace and chatted about everyday life: vacations, frustrations with the cable guy, buying new furniture. Before we knew it we were at the end of the trail and had committed ourselves to a six mile run which is about a mile father than we usually go on a Tuesday. Amazingly, the humidity was not oppressive so even though it was hot the shade on the trail was enough to make the run pretty pleasant. The run back to the car was even better. Our pace picked up and we started having a more philosophical conversation about marriage and divorce and started to notice the trail itself a bit more: how many spider webs we were seeing clinging to the trees, how soothing the sounds of the cicadas were, how the foliage was ever so slightly starting to change from summer to autumn. And then we were back. Six speedy miles in the tank, homework done, relaxed and content.

In other news, I quite enjoyed all the feedback I got about my upcoming fall schedule! While most think I'm nuts there are a few out there who are doing similar crazy things. That said, I've already started to modify the plan. One of my scheduled runs is the Rocky Balboa 10K in Philadelphia in mid-November. I ran this one last year and it had an absolutely fantastic medal and it was a very fun day but I just found out that one of my husband's favorite runs is on that same day this year: The Foot Pursuit 5K and 5 Mile Run. His race is local, 5 miles instead of six, and costs a lot less. I'm leaning towards swapping out the Rocky run for this much more low key event that I can decide on at the last minute. By November I think I might need the time off and at the very least will enjoy NOT having to drive downtown for an event when I'll be doing that on Halloween for Rock'n'Roll and for the Philadelphia Half a week later.

The calm before the storm

We're in the thick of summer here in Pennsylvania and I am well into my marathon training for the fall. Luckily, as we enter yet another heat wave, I have an easy running week ahead of me: my normal mid-week runs followed by a Saturday "long" run of a mere 6 miles. Can you imagine? 6 miles is my long run. It's awesome!

But after that, it's crazy time. Due to my own overzealous love of the marathon, some lucky and unpredicted opportunities, and my desire to run with out of town friends, I'm about to head into a frenzy of fall running. Check out the weekends I have ahead of me:

August 29: 26 mile training run
September 5-6: Dumbo Double Dare at Disneyland (19.3 miles of running)
September 12: Bird In Hand Half Marathon and 5K (That's right, I'm doing both in hilly Lancaster County)
September 19: Relief! only a 6 mile run!
September 25: DIVA 1/2 marathon in Virginia (with my friends from Skirt Sports)
October 3: New Hampshire Marathon (HILLS HILLS HILLS)
October 10: 14x1 mile repeats for MCM training
October 18: rest ( 6 miles)
October 25: Marine Corps Marathon
October 31: Rock N Roll Half Marathon Philadelphia
November 7: rest (6 miles)
November 14: Rocky Balboa 10K run
November 22: Philadelphia Half Marathon
November 28: rest
December 5: Rehoboth Marathon


In the upcoming 15 weeks I plan to run 3 official marathons and 1 unofficial marathon, 5 half marathons, 2 10Ks and a 5K

That's nuts. That's more than people do in a whole year.

And I'm nuts because instead of being petrified about all of this I'm actually looking forward to it.

A lot.

So much so that I haven't completely eliminated the possibility of adding another marathon (upgrading from 1/2 at Philadelphia) but I am hoping that I remain sane enough not to do that.

I'm hoping that my training has given me a great base so all of this activity won't kill me physically and that I will have enough distractions and each event to keep me mentally focused.

It's going to be a wild ride, for sure, and I plan to chronicle it all right here.

Now, I'm off to find myself a virtual race so I can get a real medal for the 26 mile training run I'm scheduled to do soon. I ran that far last summer and all I got was a date with the ice bucket challenge when it was over and this year I'm hoping for an upgrade!

Happy Mother's Day - Skirt Sports Giveaway!

As many of you know, this is my first Mother's Day without my Mom. My Mom was not a runner (or much of an athlete at all) and she thought those of us who were runners were a little bit bonkers. She was however, impressed by all of us. She never could quite believe that my sisters and I were able to finish marathons and she was proud of us and glad that we'd found something that made us so happy. So, instead of being sad today, I'm running a contest in her honor. I think she'd approve of this for a lot of reasons:

1) She loved pretty clothes and I'm sure she'd approve of ladies running in brightly colored skirts instead of something less cute.
2) She loved presents (who doesn't?)
3) She REALLY loved cake and this giveaway includes cake at the finish line if you are lucky enough to run the event in person in Colorado. (If you run with me in PA I will provide a finish line cupcake!)


What am I giving away? I Basic entry to the Skirt Sports 13er race - a Half marathon/10k/5K (taking place in Louisville, CO or virtually anywhere)

The winner's package includes entry to the race (in person or virtually)
$50 gift certificate from Skirt Sports
Race #
Finisher's Skirt (Don't Sweat It Collection pull over skirt)
Sponsor swag

So how do you win? Sometime between now and May 20th comment on this blog and tell me about your favorite Half Marathon (if you haven't done a half yet, tell me about a race of a different distance that you have done or a race you WANT to do someday!) Then be sure to click on the Rafflecopter box to enter the giveaway! I'll be in touch after 5/20 to tell you know who the winner is and to explain how to enter the race.

Good Luck!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Bringing Back the Blog?

Wow! Looks like I haven't updated my blog in more than five years! I'm acting surprised about that but I'm really not - when I stopped writing it was a conscious decision just like today I'm making a conscious decision to start doing it again.

Back in 2009 I decided to stop writing here because so much of my blogging was about my running life and I was taking on a leadership role in my local running group that made me feel very uncomfortable about putting my feelings about running and the group out into the world. I felt like I had to keep all that buttoned up. Times have changed, that group doesn't exist anymore, and I'm finding that I'm in a bit of a running rut and I think that this blog might help me get out of it.

What have I been doing in the past five years? Running a lot! I've continued to do marathons and half marathons and I've also taken up cycling although I haven't been quite brave enough to tackle an organized cycling event. I am hoping that might change this summer. I'll have to go somewhere official to tally up my running stats for the blog bio but I know I'm closing in on 30 full marathons and I crossed the 50 half marathon milestone a couple of years back. I still talk often about retiring from marathon distance running but I love it too much for that and I'm reminded of my how much every time I'm out there on race day.

I've been lucky enough to become an Ambassador for Skirt Sports (my long time favorite apparel company) and that's one of the reasons I wanted to resurrect the blog. Lots of the other ladies on the Ambassador team have blogs and I thought I might as well join the mix.

But I mentioned a running rut earlier and then I changed the subject. (I don't like to talk about my rut.) I'm not tired of running but I've lost my focus. I don't know what I want anymore. I've long known that chasing PR on the clock doesn't really motivate me most of time -- I'm much more of a social runner -- but I think the urge is coming back. This winter has been a tough one around here with lots of bitterly cold weather and icy trails and that combined with my mother's illness and death combined to give me about a month with no running at all. I feel like this spring I'm going to be starting from scratch with my training and that makes me want to REALLY reboot what I've been doing. That's not so easily done though because I belong to a training group that follows a specific training plan (Galloway) and while I want to run with my BRFs (Best Running Friends) I'm not sure that I want to follow the group plan and that makes life a little difficult. Maybe not so much if I push myself more in my weeknight workouts. We shall see. Plans have yet to really form.

I'm also trying to choose a fall race to focus my attention and training on. I've entered the Marine Corps Marathon lottery again with a bunch of friends and I would love to run it again but I know that's not the race for me to set a marathon PR. I will need one in early October where I can run solo and push myself OR I might just try again at Philadelphia, a race I know like the back of my hand and the course that I set my current PR on. I don't know what to do but I'm glad to be thinking about it all again.