Archive for the ‘Torture’ Category

And I wasn’t in the pool.

Thou shalt not judge my size.

11 June 08

Hips: 45.5″
Waist: 41.5″
Right Thigh: 28″
Left Thigh: 28.5″
Right Calf: 17.5″
Left Calf: 18″
Right Biceps: 13.5″
Left Biceps: 14″
Bust: 43″

18 November 08

Hips: 44.5″ (down 1″)
Waist: 40″ (down 1.5″)
Right Thigh: 26.5″ (down 1.5″)
Left Thigh: 26″ (down 2.5″)
Right Calf: 17.5″
Left Calf: 18″
Right Biceps: 13.5″
Left Biceps: 13.5″ (down .5″)
Bust: 42″ (down 1″)

Shrinkage! That’s a total of 8″ lost from my body.

I don’t believe in weighing myself, and I don’t have my weight recorded on 11 June 08. The most recent weight I have recorded in my body size journal was from 22 May 08, although I think I have weighed myself and recorded it on one of my blogs, because I have a higher number in mind that what I have written in my journal. I may ride my scooter up to Publix and weigh myself today, just so I can have all the lines filled in for my journal.

In my journal, I scribbled a goal for myself. My goal was to be able to run 5K (3.1 miles) in 38 minutes. Let’s see… if last night had been a 5K, I would have run it in 42 minutes. I bet I could push myself to do 5K in 38 minutes. Perhaps I should try that out in tomorrow morning’s run.

Shall I set a goal for you, too? Yes, yes I shall. You should donate $5 to the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society by end of day Friday. That’s a reasonable amount. Five bucks from each of my readers would be about $250. Can I count on you?

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I suppose I need to tell you about this morning’s eighteen mile run walk. Worst eighteen miles of my life.

Thank goodness for Candy, that’s all I can say. Candy, who has lost 35 pounds since this picture was taken in September:

was my running buddy this morning. Poor, patient Candy. She had to drag a 200 pound dead weight around a 4.5 mile loop four times this morning.

It was a bad, bad day for me. I really didn’t sleep much last night, and I desperately need to sleep before a long run. But I also sabotaged myself this week in that I only completed one day of training since last Friday’s 15. Shame on me allowing my depression to interfere with my training. Never again. I set myself up to have a disastrous 18.

I awoke with that same farookin headache I’ve been unable to get rid of this week. But, you know, come Marathon day, I have to run regardless of how I feel. I got up, I had an English muffin for breakfast. I left the house almost when I wanted to, so I was only 5 minutes later than I planned to arrive at the park.

We had our group pep talk and stretched together. We were told to do four complete loops for 4.5 miles each. At the start/end point, they had a table set up with a wide selection of food (brownies, cookies, bananas, candy, sports snacks, oranges, Coke, Diet Coke, water, Poweraid, pretzels in three different flavors or shapes, trail mix…) and encouraged us to try the different sports snacks to see how they agreed with our systems, since there were bathrooms available should the snacks disagree with our bodies. I have to do a separate review of a couple products, as I have a new favorite sports snack.

I started off with five other people, including one of my coaches and Candy. These girls wanted to walk the entire first lap to see if they could keep up a walking pace that they were shooting for. I felt pretty lousy, so walking sounded great to me. I think this was a mistake on my part; I should have done my walk/run ratio for at least the first lap. I was hurting. My legs, my ankles, and, curiously and most disturbing and morale-breaking my chest was tight and my shoulders ached. It felt like I was lugging an additional hundred pounds around with me. The chest tightness was demoralizing, when combined with how much my shoulders hurt, I wanted to cry and just lie down. Clearly I need to start doing push ups on my cross days.

It was scary how much I hurt, and I just did not have the mental strength I normally have to complete this walk.

We six completed the first lap right at a fifteen minute mile pace, walking. That’s not too shabby. Candy and I found ourselves alone after the first lap (after the first food stop). I had two small Dixie cups of Coke at that first stop, and the caffeine really was helpful. On the second lap, Candy and I began the lap walking for a mile, then, when we reached the lake, we started a walk two run one ratio for maybe three quarters of a mile before I told her to go on without me, that I was in a world of hurt, and just could not do that pace at all. Candy, bless her heart, never left me. I’m not sure what pace we maintained for the second lap, but I do know it took us five or ten minutes longer than the first.

Lap three, like laps one and two, sucked for me. Big time. I know we had a few running stretches in the final two laps, but all told, I don’t think I even ran one complete mile. When we got back to the food stop after the third lap, Candy said she was going to jog up to the bathroom, and said she’d catch up to me. Well, I sat my happy ass down on a bench, and had there been a roof, she would have hit it. She started hollering at me to get up, that I was not done. She hollered back to the table to our coach to have coach get my happy ass off that bench. That at least motivated me to get back up. And I even ran a little bit after I was past the bathrooms. Candy caught up to me a block before the lake and dragged me around the lake that final lap.

This walk sucked for me. It sucked it sucked it sucked. And I can barely move right now. If only my bathtub didn’t need to be scrubbed (some bunny’s hair is all over it), I’d be soaking in luke warm epsom salts right now.

My coach is worried about my pace. I truly don’t think she needs to be; I just had a very bad day. Everyone has a bad day. I am rather confident about next weekend’s 20 miles, and I am going to go to the team training because I would not have been able to finish today if I were alone. Also, I need to redeem myself in my coach’s eyes. So I’ll go next Saturday.

I’m certain reading about this abysmal attempt at a run that you will lose confidence in me. But know this, I will complete this marathon. It’s not about finishing first, it’s about finishing. And I will finish. And I won’t even finish last. I am confident of that. I had my bad day already. Thank goodness my bad day was now instead of later. Please consider helping out the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society as they help fund cancer research and help cancer patients and their families deal with the financial strain brought on by the treatment. I continue to be only $770 from my fund raising goal. As you prepare for your Thanksgiving feast, count your health among things you’re thankful for, and drop a couple bucks into the pot to help those less fortunate than us.

One more thing, apparently I paused my iPod during the 18, as my iPod only says I completed 16 miles. I’m sure it didn’t help that I dumped Poweraid onto my iPod this morning, either. So, I’m not entirely sure about run details. I think it took Candy and me four and a half hours. But, we walked. And she was very gracious to stay with me. Candy is going to be my roommate at the hotel race weekend.

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Will someone please explain to me why my body does not feel the need to sleep the night before a long run? Honestly. I’m farookin tired here, with a major lack-of-sleep headache. And I have to go do eighteen.

Please think happy thoughts for me, if you happen to get up before 1130a, which will hopefully be the latest I am running.

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I had really hoped the Advil would beat my head ache into submission, but it has not. I cannot put it off any longer, I have to just suck it up and go do my five miles. With a pounding headache.

Can you tell I’m looking forward to the next hour and hopefully-not-more-than ten minutes?

UPDATE:
Distance: 5.00 mi (and not a step more!)
Duration: 1:11′20″ (not my worst, and pretty darn close to my best)
Pace: 14′15″ /mi (I need to get my pace up)

The air was so humid I thought I’d drown breathing it.

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Holy Crap.

Distance: 15.01 mi
Duration: 3:58′15″
Pace: 15′52″ /mi.

For the final seven miles, I fantasized about a cheeseburger.

That was brutal. The sun was up, it was beastly hot, and that has to account for some of my slowness. I mean, it has to, right? I wish I could have started an hour earlier, but life interfered. (Not complaining, one of my privileges right now is to take RTY to school when she’s here on a Friday morning, and I relish it.)

My big problem is the second five. I have been pretty consistent with the first five, averaging between 1:10 and 1:15 for that five. But I lose all momentum for the second five. And this morning I had a third five I had to complete. Ugh.

When I was done, I called my husband.
Me: Hi
Him: Hi! You done?
Me: Yup. My best friend, Lance Armstrong, just congratulated me on completing my longest run to date!
Him: Cool! So, you going home now?
Me: Actually, I was thinking I’d come see you for a couple minutes. (His work is 2 miles from that park)
Him: Really? I thought you’d be exhausted and want to rush home to go back to bed.
Me: Well, I have an ulterior motive.
Him: What?
Me: Would you be pissed if I took $3 out of the bank and bought a cheeseburger on my way home?
Him: No. I have Popeyes, you could have some chicken.
Me: Yeah, but it probably wouldn’t taste anything like a cheeseburger. I’ve been fantasizing about a cheeseburger for seven miles.
Him: Okay. So I’ll see you in a few minutes then?
Me: Yup. And then, a few minutes after that, I’ll have a sweet, sweet cheeseburger!

Best. Cheeseburger. Ever!

Okay kids. I’m heading to bed. Kindly refrain from calling me unless you’re calling to schedule a job interview. I’m planning on sleeping for no less than two hours, and probably longer than that. Fifteen miles tried to make me its bitch, but I prevailed.

(where it looks like I stopped might have been when I had to tie my shoes)

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think happy thoughts for me, I’ll be starting my 15 around 730a, after I take RTY to school in a few minutes. I’m shoveling cereal into my mouth right now, even though I haven’t been awake long enough to eat. I can’t run distances on empty.

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Tomorrow, I’ll take RTY to school. Then, because my cousin is smarter than me, I’ll continue on to my favorite running loop and do my fifteen miles there. I was lamenting to my cousin that taking RTY to school would pretty much guarantee I won’t run when I return home. She said, isn’t RTY’s school halfway to your favorite course? Yes, yes it is. So I’ll dress accordingly and do fifteen miles. It’ll be six laps around the lake. And instead of parking in the usual location (I won’t need to, since I can get an even fifteen without the additional mile to my normal parking lot), I’ll park in the parking area right on the loop. That will work out really well for me, then, because I will have additional bottles of diluted G2 in my car. I went through three bottles of fluid when I did 13.1, so I imagine I’ll need at least three bottles with me tomorrow. And since I’m disinclined to carry three bottles with me, I can just have one, and then stop as required at my car to trade an empty bottle for a full.

My run will start about an hour later than I’d like it to, but at least I’ll be running the course I like. And the fluid thing was a big issue for me. If I do the 15 miles running around the lake here at home, I’d have to break out of the loop to come home and get fluids. And, once home, I’m very disinclined to continue. So just stopping at the car will be much easier.

Since you asked (you know you did), when I run with my team, they have fluid stations set up. So, for instance, on this particular loop, they normally have two stations on the lake (across the lake from each other), and another station at the normal starting location. They provide water and a sports drink, and I generally just refill the bottle I carry with me once it’s empty. I was dreading having to carry so much liquid with me if I ran near home. That’s a lot of additional weight to lug.

I have another fuel review I can do, since I tried a new product when I did 10 last week. But I think I’ll wait and try it out again tomorrow to see if I hate it as much as I think I do.

Curious, my TNT page is having donation problems right now. So the money that has been donated to my PayPal account will have to wait to show up on my TNT site until later.

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Thank you to my cousin and CIL for running with me this morning. Here is that run.

Distance: 5.08 mi
Duration: 1:15′48″
Pace: 14′53″

This morning, I learned that pausing the work out on the iPod does not actually pause the time. I met up with my cousin and CIL at the gate to my ‘hood. Since I got there first, I paused my work out and spent four minutes re-tying my shoes and stretching. When I resumed my workout, the time had not stopped, so you can go ahead an knock four minutes off my duration. And that makes this one of my fastest five!

This is last weeks really lousy not-quite-ten miles.

Since I don’t remember posting a link before, here’s my 13.1 from the week before.

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I have successfully conned my cousin and CIL into getting up with me again in the morning to do another five miles with me. I figure I’ll take advantage of their company while they’re in town.

I had an email on Friday from Disney confirming I am officially registered for the Marathon. I found that to be very exciting, in an OMG what am I thinking kind of way.

Just had an email from my coach. She said this coming Saturday will be on our own. Fifteen miles on my own. Holy crap. That’s a hell of a long run to try to complete by myself. And me without a running buddy. Crap. There is a rumor some people over in the Waterford area are going to try to run together; I’ll see if I can get in on that action. But, that’s 14 miles away. I hate driving that far when I’m unemployed. I’ll think on it this week and see if I can create a 15 mile route close to home. Heh. If I had the $25 each way in tolls and wanted to drive three hours, I could go join Boudicca’s team!

Maya sold more of her excellent photography, so I need to transfer that money over to my TNT fundraising account. Thank you Maya for being so generous! That leaves me just $773 away from my goal. Won’t you please consider dropping a couple bucks into the collection plate? Fighting cancer is a great cause.

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A big thank you to my cousin and CIL for getting up at OMG it’s early to You-Want-Me-To-What?! with me. They committed to five miles with me. It was roughly a mile to the meet up point, so I gained two miles just meeting up with them and seeing them home, so I really only had to come up with three additional miles to meet my goal of ten. I fell short:

Distance: 9.83 mi
Duration: 2:36′15″
Pace: 15′52″/mi

I really like the route CIL plotted out. He knew a walking path that enabled us to go around the lake. From their ‘hood and back, around the lake, worked out to just about five miles even. Good to know.

I have to be honest with you, though: this was the suckiest run I have had. I was unable to maintain a walk two run one pace for more than a few miles. My legs were super unhappy with my decision to get out of bed (in their defense, I was asking them to do major miles only five days after the last major run, and they’re used to have a week between major runs). My sore throat was unhappy with my decision to breathe.

All that negativity done, what a beautiful morning for a run! It was cold. I wore a jacket that my arms and fingers were happy about, but my torso quickly grew too warm for. I really enjoyed running in the cold, but for that running part.

Curiously, at mile 6.5, my right nipple suddenly started to hurt. What a peculiar ache!

My final three miles were sooo long. I never thought this run would end.

While running with my cousin and CIL, cousin was updating me on her friend, B, who is currently battling cancer. She said she told B that I’m doing TNT to raise money for LLS. She said B is proud of my efforts. But what truly amazed me is that B, who is going through cancer therapy right now, tries to walk a mile a day, and is participating in LLS activities, including the Walk Around Atlanta that was recently held. I cannot imagine trying to be physically active while receiving chemotherapy and fighting for my life. B, I am in awe of your strength and courage. And I realize I have zero right to complain about my insignificant shin splints. You are my inspiration, B. Keep up your fight and I will keep doing my part.

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I was the first person out of chips at poker tonight. That’s okay though. I was just so pleased to have my cousin and cousin-in-law in town. Unfortunately for my cousin, I successfully conned both of them into getting up tomorrow morning and running with me. My cousin is not a runner, but if you read her blog, you know she ellipticals like crazy and has some bizarre need to climb fifty million flights of stairs on her lunch breaks, so I’m hoping running doesn’t kill her. My CIL, on the other hand, IS a runner, and that intimidates the crap out of me. He promises to keep my ridiculously slow pace. I know his heart is in the right place, and I hope I don’t get intimidated by his athleticism. He was, after all, a personal trainer in a former life. It will be nice to have companionship on my run.

The plan is that I’ll run to my eldest cousin’s house (that’s where they stay when they’re in town), or more accurately, to their gate, as they promised to meet me at the gate, then, we’ll run around the lake. CIL swears there’s a trail that will enable me to lap the lake without going out onto that super busy road. Not sure how long that loop will be. My cousin is going to try for five miles, while I must complete no less than ten. They have to be home, showered, and ready to log into work (they work remotely) by 8a, so I’m fairly certain I’ll be alone for the second half of my run. But I’m just so thrilled that I’ll have company at all.

Getting my long run of the week out of the way tomorrow will mean we can take RTY to a theme park on Saturday, should she be amenable to that idea. When I do my long run on Saturday mornings, I am pretty much shot for the entire day.

Have a good night! Enjoy this cold weather. I know I am. (But I might hate it when I am out running in shorts tomorrow morning.)

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13.1 Baby! That’s a half marathon! Woo!

Distance: 13.10 mi
Duration: 3:17′39″
Pace: 15′04″ min/mi

I haven’t downloaded my run yet, so I cannot post a link for all one of you who ever out click to my runs. But let me tell you about my run.

I had my fastest five miles this morning! I ran the first five miles in 1:10′35″. That beats my previous best five time of 1:13′21″. I celebrated my fastest five miles. My coach rode by on her bike shortly after I hit five miles, and she rejoiced with me. I kept a pretty consistent pace of run one walk one for the first five.

I followed that up with my slowest five miles. I walked most of the second five. I tried to run thirty seconds walk ninety seconds, but my legs were not overly cooperative.

It was a very cloudy morning. During my first four miles, it was ridiculously humid. I was soaked after only two miles, mostly because my clothes and hair sucked all that moisture out of the air. Miserable running conditions. Then, after about mile four, it drizzled for maybe half a mile or a mile. That made such a difference in the humidity. Around mile six, the wind picked up. Oh, blessed, cooling wind! It remained windy for the rest of my run.

Our route is one mile from where we start to the lake. It’s two and a half miles around the lake. Since we had to get thirteen miles in, our coaches encouraged us to be creative with our route. So, I did the mile out to the lake, a lap around the lake, and then did a half mile square before doing three more laps around the lake. A final mile back to the start, and then two laps around the fountain to take me up to 13.1. It was important to me to hit point one, so that I could claim the half marathon. Honestly, if you’re going to do thirteen, why not do point one more and claim a real milestone?

I actually had to walk in circles to get that final point one. One of my mentors was sitting on the bench and asked me what I was doing. I told her I wanted that point one. She laughed, applauded me, and encouraged me to finish that point one so I could claim a half marathon! You may not understand, but my team mates do!

Overall, it was a great run. I feel great. Endorphin rush and all. Of course, I am rapidly losing my ability to walk, but this too shall pass!

Clearly I need to go out today and see if I can find a 13.1 sticker for my car!

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I now know of two other people I attended college with in Rochester who are planning to come to Orlando to run the Disney marathon in January. I don’t know why it amuses me, but it does.

Tom did a ten mile race recently and averaged a 7′49″ race. Wow. That’s amazing. I cannot do that.

I’m still hoping to be under six hours for my marathon.

Still, I’m very amused that two people from my past will be in Orlando running the same race as me.

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That wRitErsbLock is a cheater. She was supposed to do twelve miles today. She utilized google maps to plot a course so that she could be sure to hit twelve miles. She ended up only doing eleven miles. CHEATER! People enduring cancer treatment don’t get to cut a mile off their journey just because they’re lazy. Cheater.

More about this morning’s run:
Distance: 11 mi
Duration: 2:50′44″
Pace: 15′30″

That’s a terrible pace. But, I hit the proverbial wall, so really, I’m just thrilled I finished.

If you want to skip hearing about my run, you can go ahead and drop $5 or $10 into the fundraising pot right now and skip the rest of this entry.

My route took me six miles in a relatively straight line away from my house and back. Well, that was the plan, anyway. When I hit roughly 5.6 miles, I was so bored with that road, and realize a whole lot of the same was coming up for the next half mile, that the left turn off the main road seemed like a good call. That took me past a wooded area, near a giant lake on Chickasaw Trail. I figured I’d still make up that little tiny bit of mileage I was cutting off.

I am glad I went that way. As I suspected, my route was almost completely shade-free. But that slight detour gave me a half mile of blessed shade. During that time, I called my husband to check in with him. I was at one hour twenty-seven minutes at that point, and I was very lonely.

As I started toward home, I greatly enjoyed the very brief company of another runner. We had to wait at the same red light at Narcoossee Road, and then I ran with her for a minute before I couldn’t keep up her pace. It was so nice to not be alone. Seriously, I struggle by myself.

At 6.7 miles, I had such an endorphin high! It was fabulous! And short-lived. I think the wall was at about 9 miles. I hardly ran at all after that, and struggled to keep an 18 minute pace. My legs were quite sore, and I was tired. Sadly, I was also in the danger zone: that mile stretch with no sidewalk on a 35mph road on which people generally do 60+mph. Fortunately, it was a very breezy stretch of road, and the moron van riding the bike lane moved back into his own lane before he approached me. I still opted for the grass for that vehicle.

I never made up that .5 I cut off. Funny how cutting .5 off one direction also cuts it off on the return trip. So, twelve miles didn’t happen. Oh, sure, I kept telling myself to do a quick lap of the neighborhood to get me that final mile, but I was flat out exhausted.

Actually, I should really go take my contacts out, because I can imagine myself falling asleep here as I ice my shins on the couch.

Go me! Eleven miles is my farthest run to date. I am so proud of me! Now, be proud of yourself when you drop a couple bucks into the TNT fundraiser to help fund the fight against blood born cancers. Do it. It’s the right thing to do!

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Almost time for me to commence my 12 mile run.

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