Back...hopefully for reals this time... :)

K.

Long break. Too much to cover so most will be skipped and the good parts I'm sure will surface periodically :) Basically right as soon as I got back on track with everything my friend Melanie came to stay with me for 10 weeks while doing an internship down here. It is all her fault. (Well, that's my story anyway...). We go way back and unfortunately have a shared love of good wine, better cheese, red stripe and late nights. Needless to say my butt was kicked off the gym wagon before I'd even warmed up the seat.

The next ten weeks went by so quick in a summertime blur of good times. We did a bunch of stuff, ate out a ton, sat by the pool a lot....but we did walk four-six miles pretty regularly.... What we did not do was run. I didn't run once the ten weeks she was here, and then for good measure decided to take of the next two also. This brought me to the end of August, and the stark reality, that the marathon was 8 weeks away!

Now I hadn't planned on running it, but rather was going to walk it with my sister. While it would have made me sore as hell, I could have walked a marathon on August 27 (the day I realized my plan was falling apart). Sarah had hurt her foot, (really bad plantar fasciitis) and it wasn't getting any better. After her 10 mile walk almost killed her, she decided she would switch to the half and see if she could finish that. Now I am doing the marathon with Lauren, but without my sister with us we feel like we should run it. So with 8 weeks, the both of us are desparately trying to find some way to finish it, not die, and not get injured. Possible? We'll see...

So starting in beginning of this month I tried to become more dedicated. Stuck to my three midweek runs, long on the weekend. Due to such a shortened timeframe however I ramped up my midweeks more quickly. I think I did 3,4,3 the first week of the month, then 3,5,3, then last week 5,7,5 and stuck with that this week. For longs I did 6,8,10, and then this morning 13. Felt pretty good, though I am having horrible sciatica (from my %#%##!! piriformis....STILL) in my right leg and need new shoes before I get stress fractures in my left foot. They are a hair too small and it's giving me some pretty serious pain in my first two metacarpals right in front of my ankle over my arch....any ideas what causes that? Super sharp pain sometimes....

Anyway sitting now in my recovery sox (gift from Lauren!) and they feel real good! Wish I could've stretched and iced more, but not time. Anyway, barring any major injury the plan is as follows.....there are almost four weeks left (rest of this one then three), and I'm only doing this as a training run for ATL in November, so I plan to take it nice and easy. No time goals, just want to finish. Upright. :)

This week (1): tennis today, strenght tomorrow a.m., 4 miles recovery p.m, Thursday crosstrain a.m., 6 miles p.m. Fri-Sun off (I know- I should get something in here but I'm going to Athens for the LSU/UGA game so I may as well just be honest with myself...it's not gonna happen!)

2: Monday 16 miles LSD, Tuesday 4 miles recovery, Wednesday a.m. strength, p.m. 6 miles, Thursday a.m. swim, p.m. tennis, Friday a.m. Strength, p.m. 5 miles, Saturday off, Sunday 18 miles.

3: Monday off, Tuesday am 4 miles recovery, p.m. tennis, Wednesday a.m. strength, p.m. 7 miles, Thursday a.m. yoga, p.m. 5 miles, Friday a.m. strength, p.m. tennis, Sunday 20 miles.

4: Monday off, Tuesday 4 miles recovery, Wednesday 5 miles, Thursday 4 miles, Friday Strength, Saturday off, Sunday Marathon.

Now I know it's tough, but remember I'm not afraid of walk breaks and don't have any time goal in mind. I am looking at this as my last long run before the ATL marathon on Thanksgiving day, so that is why there's no taper....After this I will taper before the next! So is it doable? I think so...will I do well? Haha....NO. But I'm not worried about it; I am excited for a number of reasons:

1) to see the fam
2) to run a BIG marathon
3) for the entertainment (it's at like every mile!)
4) to relax and have no time goal
5) to be in DC again...Yay!

So anyway.....really looking forward too it, and hopefully after the Marine Corps I will feel fit and on track for Atlanta!

For those who may care, my plan is to do MCM, ATL, mobile in January, and then the New Orleans Rock 'n Roll in February. I am really hoping to PR in Mobile and then again in Nola, but we'll have to see :) Obviously MCM is going to be awful, and due to the hills in Atlanta I'm not too hopefull about that either :(

I know you all probably don't believe me, but I swear I'm back and can't wait to back on track reading all your blogs ;-)

Official start next Monday!

so I have come up with my new plan, and it goes into effect next week! Kind of exciting, I suppose, but what's not is the thought of doing all those runs on a treadmill :( that's what I get for signing up for a fall marathon, I suppose! Anyway, my sister has been at it for about four weeks now and her latest update is here:

http://sarahwurrey.com/?p=353

I have been trying to work on strength training, and ugh...I hate it! I am also such a weakling....today's mission is to put music back on my ipod...any suggestions?

100th post!

Sad, actually, that it isn't more since I started this blog last August, but considering I took off from February through May (for the most part!) it's acutally probably not too bad.

Update from the week: took an ab class on Wednesday that I was totally not prepared for...you know when you aren't even sore the next day? It was like I couldn't even DO any of the exercises properly because I am so weak in the core right now that I didn't even get anything out of the class...I still blame it on having too-long legs :) I struggle whenever I try exercises that require raising and lowering your (straight) legs while lying on your back...this is so hard for me! Needless to say, I won't be heading back to 'killer core' until I gain some strength and flexibility...keeping my legs straight is impossible!

Friday I just ran on the treadmill...a pretty ho-hum 3 miles...but starting to feel better so I am on the right track.

Saturday took an hour and 15 minute pilates class that was great muscle-wise; a lot more weight work than I have done in pilates in the past, but not as much of the spine lengthening flexibility stuff that I like so much in my pilates dvds....oh well, guess I will have to continue doing my own dvds once a week or something.

Sunday I ran my butt off at work, so I didn't work out, and today is the upper body session with the trainer. I am scared! I didn't stop feeling sore from the lower body workout I had last Monday until Friday! I will also undoubtedly be embarassed; I have ZERO upper body strength. I can't even do one real push-up! I periodically entertain the idea of the push-up challenge that is always circulating around these blogs, but I never follow through.....maybe I'll get on that!

So workouts slowly gearing up...glad to have a gym and a pool so I can finally swim again! The one aspect of fitness I have really been doing great with however is nutrition. Past couple weeks have been great...getting back to my more preferred weight zone...we'll see!

In other news my sister has a new blog post...

http://sarahwurrey.com/?p=343

Check her out! And convince her to start a separate running blog! :)

Sarah's latest training update....

Hey everyone! To anyone who missed it a couple posts back I am doing the Marine Corps Marathon in October because my sister lives in DC and she really wanted to do it. She is new to running, and needs all the advice and help she can get! I am trying to get her to start a strictly running blog, but until then she is updating periodically on her website sarahwurrey.com

Her latest is here:

http://sarahwurrey.com/?p=339

check her out and give her some tips!

Wow...I actually do have hamstrings...and I feel them!

So I am loving having a gym again. I obsess over the schedule, trying to figure out all of the classes I want to take and how I am going to fit them all in. I also love love love that their treadmills are so NEW and so high tech and smooth and that they each have a tv! I have never been able to watch tv on the treadmill because it is usually across the room and up really high, and I'm just not that coordinated, I have no desire to fall of a treadmill in front of 100 people. But with the personal tvs it's ok, and I think I am really going to appreciate this since the majority of my long runs for the Marine Corps Marathon will be happening over the summer, when it is still in the triple digits here.

I also for the first time have had a session with a personal trainer. Two free sessions come with membership, one for lower body and one for upper. Yesterday I did the lower body session....Let me just tell you, if I had any delusions about having retained some of the muscle and endurance I earned training for the Mardi Gras Marathon...they are gone! I am a huge weakling gasping for breath. I broke a sweat just doing his 7 minute warm up on the cross trainer! To save a little bit of face, however, he explained that no one uses these machines properly, they all just shift weight left to right and bounce up and down, which is apparently wrong. Your hips are supposed to be motionless, with all the effort coming from your legs...and this is WAY harder. (Well, maybe you all use these machines right, but looking around I noticed no one there did!). The super embarassing part was that after he had ramped me up to a heart rate of 185 or so we took it back down...the next heart rate check he thought I would be at like 120 or so, and I was still at 150! He seemed surprised for sure, and said, 'Wow, it should really have come down faster than that...'. The next time we checked it was still at 130, so alas, I am very out of shape! (I did have two cups of coffee right before at a late afternoon meeting, and I'm going to continue telling myself that that had something to do with it)...

Today I'm going for Killer Core and Pilates Sculpt. I am so happy to have my classes back! Only unfortunately (according to the schedule, anyway) step classes do not seem as populare at this gym as they were at my last, which is a total bummer....I love multi-step and step circuit....they only have two step classes and both are weekdays in the a.m. :(

Needless to say, I think I will have a much better grasp on strength training going into this marathon...hopefully it will help!

Joined a gym!

Yay. So I am officially back on track...though at a much lower intensity :) I joined a gym, something I have been wanting to do forever, but have simply been too cheap. I would convince myself I can run outdoors, do handweights, pushups, squats and abs in my house...who needs a gym?

Which is fine for winter training. For the Mardi Gras Marathon I started in August, and though it was still hot til late October (I know!) November through January when the mileage really got up there the weather was great. Unfortunately this doesn't work as well when training for an October Marathon. We are steadily in the 80s everyday now, and it will only get higher. Humidity is like 120%, I swear, and that makes it really really hard to work out because you feel like you are breathing in water. Also the strange thing about the south is that the hottest time of day can be 5pm...right when you want to work out and think it should be getting cooler.

So yeah. I joined the Pelican Athletic Club here in town, and I LOVE IT. Since I moved from CA I have been missing gym classes, sitting by the pool, using the treadmills in AIR CONDITIONING!! I didn't want to run much in AC last year because the marathon had the potential to be warm, but given the Marine Corps Marathon is in the end of October in DC it should be ok this time. I am super pumped and hope to go alot, so I should be in a lot better shape than I was for the marathon last year. Only ran 2 miles yesterday, but hey, it's a start!

Anyone else doing Marine Corps?

OMG...I'm back ;) ....sort of....

I know you all have been waiting with baited breath (whatever that means?), and it's finally here! I'm back! Or I'm trying to be at least....I have started running again (if I can even call it that at this point it's so pathetic...), and have registered for another marathon! Lauren and I are doing the Marine Corps Marathon in DC in October! I am very excited, not only to be doing another marathon, but to be going to DC where everything is free (museums anyway) and where my sister lives.

And she will be doing it with us!

She is new to running and needs everyone's support, so check out her first post:

http://sarahwurrey.com/?p=321

Any advice will be greatly appreciated. Anyone else going to be doing MCM?