19 posts tagged “running”
My running has been going smoothly this winter (aside from the usual “it’s too dark/cold/icy/brown out for running” cop-outs that are an inevitable part of the season). It’s a marked drastic improvement over LAST winter, when I spent the better part of these gloomy months complaining about runner’s knee, not running, and blah blah whiny blah blah pity party.
What’s funny, though, is that my return to the sport can be largely attributed to a $20 strip of synthetic rubber.
I’ve seen a lot of runners wearing these bands over the years, but never had a reason to try one out until last spring. And let me tell you, this little device has become indispensable for me. Its simple concept (apply pressure to the surrounding tendon to hold the kneecap in place) is fabulously effective – more so than any of the PT stretches I did or even the custom inserts I purchased. Hell, I made it through an 11-mile long run with this baby strapped to my leg; I’m pretty sure world domination would be possible, if only I didn’t have all that packing to take care of.
Anyway, I just wanted to pass along this info for any runners/athletically-inclined folks out there. (Hopefully the rest of you can simply enjoy knowing my sanity can be bought for a mere $20.)
Tisha’s Stats
overall place: 2235 out of 5094
division place: 282 out of 847
gender place: 1039 out of 3106
time: 1:41:27
pace: 9:47
chip time: 1:37:49
Shane’s Stats
overall place: 1068 out of 5094
division place: 160 out of 422
gender place: 687 out of 2016
time: 1:29:20
pace: 8:35
chip time: 1:25:42
As it turned out, we both missed our ultimate time goals, but believe me when I say it didn’t matter. With the weather setting its own blisteringly hot, record-breaking PR, we were both just happy (and proud) to reach that 10-mile finish line. And as with all running events, the joy of accomplishing this race goes far beyond anything the numbers will tell you - which is why we're sure to be back for more.
Special thanks go out to my mom, Jon, Shannon, Carrie and Soopa for coming out to support us! We loved celebrating the end of this months-long journey with you (and that warm caramel pecan roll).
I’ve been kind of crappy about updating this week. I could offer you lots of excuses related to this, but they all boil down to me being really wasted. And high. All the time. But especially at work. (It’s the only solution to the shit stink. Can you blame me?)
Anyway, this post is simply an invitation to get up really early in the morning and stand outside in the chilly autumn weather to watch me and my husband (in reverse order) run from one spot to another, with a bunch of other crazies. Yes, the Twin Cities 10-Miler is just around the corner – one week from Sunday – so reserve your finish line cheering spot now! (Or just join us for a more reasonably-scheduled brunch afterward.)
Details for the route can be found on the official race site. We leave the starting line on Sunday, October 7th around 7:10 a.m. (whenever the second wave of runners starts); I am hoping to stick with a 9:45 minute per mile pace, while Shane is gunning (and how) for 8:00-minute miles. Info on the brunch will follow shortly, but only if you let me know you’re interested!
Finally, keep us in your thoughts this weekend, as a group of us will be venturing out to some hallowed and hick-ified NASCAR racing grounds in Shakopee. I am hoping my “Beer don’t make you dumb, that’s why they call it BudWISER” T-shirt will keep me from getting Bible-thumped too hard. (And here you thought I was all about the anti-stereotypes...)
On Thursday night last week, Shane and I attended our TC 10-Miler clinic (as usual) to participate in a special training session: stairs. We met our little running group at the top of some long, steep steps off Summit Avenue and proceeded to run up (and walk down) them five times, switching between single-steps and double-steps for each repetition. With a total of around 500 stairs completed, it was one HELL of a killer workout.
On Friday, I awoke with some very angry, tight (and conspiring-against-me) calves and quads. However, we still went out to our state’s annual food-on-a-stick festival with my parents and brother – as planned – for an afternoon of family fun. That excursion added an additional 5-6 hours of walking to the exercise the day before. Needless to say, my legs were not happy.
Then came Saturday and the sad spectacle of me limping out of bed like an 82-year-old with a hangover. (Or at least how I imagine it would be mixing the old and the alcohol.) But again, we had plans in place that couldn’t be changed; our long run this week needed to happen on Saturday morning if it was going to happen at all. So we packed up our hurting bodies and headed out for a 9-mile run.
By mile 8, I was in so much pain, I was past the point of feeling it. Thus, I was confident I could complete the run without any problems...until a crack in the sidewalk tripped me up. I caught myself on the next step, and under normal circumstances, I would have recovered. However, the added weight of that loss-of-balance was just too much for my exhausted right leg to handle, and it collapsed beneath me. My body crashed down to the ground, with my knee and elbow taking the brunt of the concrete force rushing toward me.
As I rolled over onto my back and tested out the injuries in my various limbs, I felt pain accompanied by a strange sense of acceptance. With all the abuse my legs had taken over three days, I figured they were justified in fighting back. But as I lay there, bruised, scrapped and sore, I also couldn’t help thinking how weird it was to have just experienced the kicking of my own ass.
There’s this point I hit from time to time in running where my body unquestionably wants to STOP (mandatory caps). My speed decreases, my legs ache, my knee throbs, even my upper body feels sore from the intensity of my workout. This point is constantly changing, depending on how often I’m running or what kind of distances I’m doing, but I often reach it when I’m out on a long run.
Long runs, for those not used to the term, are the runs you do on the weekends (usually Sundays) that log the farthest distance of the training week. They are the most important part of preparing for any high-mileage race, as their purpose is to condition your body for handling all those miles at once.
I know it sounds crazy, especially to non-runners, but doing challenging long runs and hitting that breaking point are two of my absolute favorite parts of running. They combine together to create a moment when I have to stop running with my body and start running with my heart. And I’m forced to question: How deep can I dig? How much can I handle? What can I pull from within when everything without wants me to give up and go home?
No matter how many times I've experienced it, the answer is always more than I expect.
And the feeling upon finishing is always pure joy.
So, yes, to those that have asked. I am very happy to be back in the midst of training, ramping up my long runs in anticipation for the TC 10-Miler in October. I may not need running to live a healthy, well-adjusted life, but it sure as hell helps to keep these glimpses of my true capabilities close at hand. If you ask me, we could all use more reminders like this - hints of the amazing reservoir of strength we hold somewhere just beyond the physical realm.
This past Sunday, my Sauconys and I returned to the road for my first race since being diagnosed with runner’s knee. Shane and I participated with the rest of the running group in the Grand Old Day 5K, the same event that launched the running “careers” of our three previously-non-running friends in 2006.
The out-and-back course loops one section of Grand Avenue, and as I made my way down the initial stretch, Jon, Shannon and Carrie ran past me on their way back up the street. There was something symbolic about that portion of the run for me, watching my friends pass me by. I contemplated how far they have come – from learning to run a mile, then 5K, 10K, 10 miles, and finally 13.1. Their progress in a twelve-month period has been nothing short of amazing, and to each of them: I hope you take tremendous pride in what you accomplished this year! You guys are rock stars.
But as my feet reached the turn-around, I felt more relief than anything at finally coming full circle, back to the starting point we were at one year ago. With months behind me that are not quite as astonishing, I was – and am – eager to move on to the next chapter in my personal running saga.
So thank god running is the type of journey where the milestones hit or missed along the way don’t quite matter as much as the journey itself. Holding that knowledge in my heart helps me overcome the unexpected detours and feel overwhelmingly HAPPY about simply getting back on the road.
As of Tuesday, I’ve officially been back in the running game for a full week. I would like to say that the first few runs have been all rainbows and puppies, but I won’t lie. It’s been tough. My heart and spirit may not have forgotten how to run, but my body has; it’s slow, painful work to pull my legs through a basic mile after everything I've endured.
I wanted so badly to believe this would be easy, that the hours I logged with the elliptical machine and weights would lay the groundwork for a smooth transition. While the exercise certainly helped me keep up my strength and lung capacity, I’m clearly running with a lot of underused muscle. My body is on unfamiliar ground. It’s going to require heapings of practice (and patience) to fully regain my “sea legs” at this point.
On top of that, my knee still hurts. I expected the pain, of course, since the podiatrist had given me fair warning about it. The inserts do a great deal to lessen the irritation, but they are not a magical cure. Knowing that fact and accepting it are two different matters, though, so I’m working on the acceptance bit right now.
Despite the disappointment, I remain optimistic. After nearly seven years with this sport, I know being a runner is not about miles logged. It’s not about how well you run or how fast you run. Being a runner is about something far deeper.
You see, running today is purely superfluous - it’s far more convenient to walk or bike or drive to reach our destinations. That means when I run, I choose to do so. I decide to push my body and test my limits. And it is through consistently, consciously rising to meet this personal challenge that I become a runner – physically, mentally, emotionally. It is why running means more to me than simply being in shape.
So I’m holding onto the belief that at the end of the day, at the end of each mile, no matter how sluggish or tired or hurt I may feel, I am still a runner. I am still lacing up my shoes to take the next step, however small. No injury or absence can alter that.
“The more I run, the more I want to run, and the more I live a life conditioned and influenced and fashioned by my running. And the more I run, the more certain I am that I am heading for my real goal: to become the person I am.”
