It's going down FOR REEEEEEAL!

Four days people. four days.

Other than the constant sense that I certainly could not have trained properly and am terribly unfit I feel reasonably prepared for the upcoming adventure. My feelings of unease, unpreparedness and horrific fitness are normal taper shenanigans so I'm only slightly panicked..!!!

GAME F**ing OVER MAN!!!!! Yeah, slight panic.

All of my workouts of note are done and all that is left to do is get to the damn start line!

I tend to ruminate about the training cycle while tapering and contemplate what I managed to pull off despite horrid weather and general malaise and what I really botched.

This was last week.... Yeah.

 Success:
-The past 7 weeks, no workouts missed or screwed up
-I have seen consistent improvement in my fitness and speed
-I felt very positive, no whining, procrastinating or avoiding. I just DID my runs.
-Totally decent 20 miler at Eastern States
-Every week had speed, mid length run at base, hill work, super easy day and a long run. Boom.
-Staying uninjured. Yes, complete win.
-Singing. I scare these chickens down the road by singing to them. You're going down FOR REEEAAALLLLL, ya chickens.
-Hydration. For the first time even I believe I have my act together in the hydration department. It only took 3 weeks of feeling disgusting for me to pick up a glass of water and drink it. (more than like, once a day that is.) Go me, much health.
-EATING. I seriously ate so much. WIN.
-Shoes. LOVE the Hoka Clifton's and no, I'm not getting paid to say that....

Awwwwww...

 Botched:
-Most long runs! the mileage was fine but I felt like the junk queen of crap mountain
-Long runs with an attempt to create the hill profile of Boston. Nope. NOT AT ALL.
-Serious, half marathon pace speed or better. HA HA HA NO NO. Oh well.
-Any kind of cross training. However, I did not expect to do any. I'm not super human...

So here I am 4 days out with legs that are cooperating and ready to get me to the finish. I'm glad that I was able to dedicate some hours to good training this Spring, and I'm also glad to be feeling happy about running and not burned out. Good balance!

I don't have a specific finish time in mind, 3:40 would be great but might be a lofty goal after the #manychallenges of the winter. Thus far, the forecast looks good.

PERFECT

So here's to the next few days of carb loading, trying to rest, going to the expo and getting into the spirit of things! (getting into the spirit won't be hard, I'm really looking forward to getting out there again on Monday and feeling really fortunate to be there again.)

Suddenly... It is TWO WEEKS until Boston!

Two weeks to go...
GAH! How did THAT happen? For the longest time I had about 1,856 weeks to get ready and now the shit has hit the fan and I'm tapering.

Snow. Hill reps. Nut butter. Hoka's. Basically my life.

My final long run, of 18 miles was yesterday and it was the worst. It was 35 degrees with a serious 35-40 MPH wind which made things just as amusing as you would think. At mile 10 I turned onto the road back home and face first into the most intense head wind that I have had the pleasure of running in in quite some time. (also, Emma's Dad- if you are reading- I notice you have a cat. Yeah, I'm the creepy runner that notices spare animals in driveways, let that cat inside and get your son an allergy pill, he'll be ok! ;-))
Anyway, wildlife aside the run was fun good times, and perfect acclimation for what is sure to be an 80 degree day in Boston. I felt as though I was being pushed backwards and I could do little more than laugh and swear and try to stay upright (yeah, now the people in my town think that I run while intoxicated due to my staggering gait. Woof!

THIS

Horrid long run aside, last week was decent. All of my other workouts went off without a hitch and that is encouraging. It is hard to believe that I have only spent two weeks fully back on the road vs in on the treadmill but I might as well believe it- because that's the truth! Luckily I was able to get some road time in during the last two weeks in March so that counts for something. I'm also thankful for a successful run at the Eastern States 20- without that I might feel like a hopeless case.

My LEFT FOOT is a hopeless case...

Per the norm I am reflecting back on this training cycle and wondering how this Boston experience will play out.
Two years ago I ran in a 3:31:xx  and felt like I had trained hard, spent 90% of my time road running and despite my worries about the hills I was able to push through. I had an amazing second half of the race and set an (at the time) PR. Like a boss.
Last year I felt like I nailed my training cycle and despite a decent amount of indoor running I had been able to get in all my long runs outdoors, I had run several lead up races and had cross trained like a complete hero (and I was on the verge of a serious burnout but did not know it yet.) Nothing could have prepared me for a hot day and I had a miserable run, ran the first half at PR pace and then blew up, finishing in around 3:55. (this is a respectable pace for sure- simply not what I had trained for. No disrespect to any marathoner of any speed- but when you are training for a sub 3:25 and miss it by 30 minutes it is a lie to say that you are pleased!) 

I ran every run this year, until a few weeks ago on the treadmill- and certainly felt it when I got out onto the roads again. (sorry trashed quads.) It has been terribly cold and I'm used to it, I run nicely in the chilly weather and ask that it just stick around in some capacity until the 21st. While I'm not exactly setting speed records this time around I have been extremely consistent in my training and have been enjoying it. (if only more of it had been on the road in real life conditions...) My mileage has made me happy and has balanced out my concern about lack on endurance over tricky terrain. I'm always worried about the Newton hills- for good reason. They are scary as you think they are.

Bottom line, if it is an 70 (or 60- who am I kidding!?) day in a couple of weeks I am effed to the maximum but will still have fun. I will have a beer with the drunk BC boys, kiss a Wellesley girl, take selfies with my Dad at mile 18.5 and steal candy from the kids in Kenmore. This actually sounds like a really great time!

If I luck out and it is a maximum of 42 degrees and variably overcast, with freak snow showers, maybe some ice, and also a 50 MPH wind (tail wind, or tail gale as I have been calling it) I will win the whole race and be on the cover of Runners World next month since the entire world will be shocked by my running dominance in horrible conditions! HAH! This too is a great plan. There will be no middle ground, I plan to either win or walk. The end.

I'm excited though. I feel like there isn't pressure this year, I already qualified for 2016, I don't feel like I have trained for a PR, I am taking the casual approach to the whole shebang (says the person who just tapped out a million miles.... it's all relative!)

My motto for this year is "flexibility' I plan to roll with the punches, adjust according to weather and have a helluva great day out there. I'm lucky to be able to experience something as cool as running the Boston Marathon and I appreciate every year that I make it to the start. After questioning my ability as much as I did last year I appreciate even more what it takes to make it to the start of this journey and it isn't something that I would ever take for granted.

All of us who line up in two weeks have a hard earned spot there. We all deserve to celebrate the fact that we made it, and this year I plan to enjoy every step on my way to the finish.

Eastern States 20 Miler recap!

As usual I have neglected my blog badly and am weeks behind.
Where I left off was at the end of a rotten week, maybe even a couple rotten ones. I assumed at that point that someday my work would start paying off and that each and every run would not feel like a major struggle.  What comes to mind as I mull over over the last couple of weeks is that finally, some improvement has been made! I do plan to talk about my training in more detail but suffice it to say that things are beginning to fall back into place.

(this blog post only has one picture and many words. I know lots of you dislike this format. Sorry)
This past Sunday I traveled to Kittery to participate in  the Eastern States 20 miler. I fully intended to use this race as a training run. I was hoping to make it more of a brisk training run than most of my death march long runs have been here in my own town. Knowing that I only had three weeks until the marathon, I did not want to go balls to the wall and end up burning out my legs!

Currently I am running without a Garmin as mine died back in November and apparently I can not be bothered to buy another one...I do most of my long runs as well as marathons without ever consulting my gadget so I have not found this to be overly traumatic. That being said it does make it slightly difficult to gauge your pace if you're trying to hit a certain target. I have, however become rather good at running based on effort and feel. (nothing like a naked 20 to see how well you can gauge pace!)

I thought that this 20 miler would give me good feedback on how my fitness is coming along. I have not had a great long run yet but the shorter distance work was finally starting to click somewhat better.
This race was wrapping up a week of challenging workouts for me and was also my highest mileage week thus far. I knew it would not be going into this race with fresh legs but I did not mind that. I was targeting a pace that felt maintainable and that also would leave me with legs ready to get back to work by Tuesday. Knowing that the course was, relatively speaking, bone FLAT I knew I should be able to manage a better tempo than on my recent long runs in my hilly town. I was excited about the course because it was supposed to be really pretty- you just can't beat easy and pretty heh heh twss.

The race started smoothly, and I fell into an calm and relaxed gate. I spent the first several miles fiddling with my iPod. Apparently since I have not used it in well over a year I cannot remember how to operate the thing!(fact: I RARELY run with music. I felt like having a race dance party though so I did...) I had created for myself an amazing playlist of all of the best songs in the world and now I could not access it! I ended up listening to quite a few random songs, some good some bad and a lot of Mr. Worldwide... Like, a LOT.
Since I was not using a Garmin I really had no idea where I was on the course but was trying to guess where I was now and then. I knew that mile 7 would be noticeable, as there was a half marathon as well which started there. Mile 7 came along pretty fast, and I was feeling very good at this point. After the ipod mess I had settled into what my legs and lungs were calling maintainable speed and I was happy.

The other thing that happened around mile seven was that a fairly brisk wind picked up. It certainly was not a gale force hurricane disaster, but it was the kind of wind that smashes directly in your face and never goes away. It was more of a nuisance than anything it did make running a little more challenging than I would've liked. (I would like a brisk TAILWIND, DUH.)
In better news, the course was indeed pancake flat! I have not run such a flat 20 miler ever. It was very confidence building- there is nothing like zipping along on a bone flat surface to make you feel like the running rockstar that you were meant to be! (I wish Boston was so hill free.)




The remainder of the race was uneventful, with pleasant views, I had cooperative legs and all was well. Boring boring, just how I like it!

Per the norm the final mile felt like a 100 mile stretch but I was pleased to be able to pick it up a little and to feel that I did, as intended, still have gas in the tank. I finished with a smile on my face in 2:48:48 which is a 8:2-somthing pace. I was tremendously pleased with my results and feel that I met my goal fantastically.

Well, we managed to get one picture.

I felt great post race as well which merits mention since I often do not. I walked through several water stations and did very well keeping up with snacking and I had an amazing donut, as well as a bagel with peanut butter for breakfast so: winning nutrition. Then I demanded an Italian sandwich (as I do after every long run which is weird, since I don't like ham) and I basically drove Eric crazy with my hunger complaints until we found a damn Amato's. #mainerproblems

The moral of the story is that I feel one step more prepared for Boston. My skills over hills are a work in progress since I have only had ONE week this Spring where every run has been on the road. YIKES. REALLY YIKES. I know how badly it will affect me if the marathon falls on a hot, or even warm day this year. It has been very cold here and that is that! However, I had a lot of fun running on Sunday, I felt as though my endurance is coming back and it was a very positive day! Only a couple more weeks to pull it all together...

Five Weeks until Boston! Ohhhhhhh yikes!

Another Maine week has come and gone, and while we are that much closer to Spring the whole weekend was full of raw wind and wet snow. Yuck! GROSS.

I did my long run on Saturday in the midst of an on and off blizzard. It was just above freezing so while it was most unpleasant out it was not cold enough for the roads to get icy. There were a few fleeting moments around mile 16 when I thought that getting run off the road might be preferable to continuing but since that did not happen, I soldiered on, suffering in many obvious ways.

I am still in the midst of suffering the ill effects from my post vacation upper respiratory crapola. Running in the cold air seems to trigger some lengthy and intense bouts of coughing. To the extent where I genuinely feel that I may have coughed some of my internal organs out of place! (while I expect this is an exaggeration it's only a slight one, I certainly seem to be keeping my abdominal muscles strong with the remnants of this pesky bug. I need a breathing treatment.)

My brain is getting really excited that Boston is only five weeks out!
My legs and body (and the weather) however seem to be on a slightly different page at this point. GAH! Could it please be warmer than 12 degrees for more than 24 hours? Maybe no more snow? I really feel like we might run Boston in some kinda blizzaster.

It might be this or 95 degrees. And I'm used to blizzards, bacon and shame so BRING IT...

 I am trying (and only failing slightly) not to fall into the trap of comparing this years training to last years. Last year I was absolutely on track for a PR and made a lot of sacrifices to get in every ounce of training that I possibly could. I chose to make training a top priority, over almost everything else and while I am glad that I did (even though I did not meet my goal) I am not willing to prioritize my running over my business at this point in time.
Clearly, I need to focus on what I am good at now (walking, bathroom breaks, snacking, complaining and running 10 minute miles and drinking beer) VS what I was good at last year (running fast, ninja skills, being a rock star and... bathroom breaks. And beer. That goes without saying.)

Thank the sweet lord baby Geezes for beer.

So where does all of this leave me?
The great news is that my legs and body feel good (with the notable exception of the cough of doom) Currently no aches or pains, and while I do notice the lack of Yoga practice I simply can not get there right now. I am making the best of it and trying to do some quality stretching a few times a week.

Mileage wise I feel that I am meeting my goals. We all know that I'm not a super high mileage runner and, with the exception of my sick week in February, I have been happy with my mileage totals!

My speed goals though? Not even close. As in, so far off that I get a little riled up occasionally! Where did my speed go?
My logical thought is that first and foremost I'm transitioning directly from the treadmill to the road and into my peak training weeks. I am hoping that the gains I'm (trying) to make will become apparent soon..... PLEASE RUNNING GODS.
This is the first year in EVER that I have not tested my race legs mid winter in a half marathon situation to see if I'm on point- so I feel a little lost. And a little slow. Like a turtle kind of nonsense. No clue what to expect in 5 weeks.

My plan at this point is simply to stick to my training schedule and hope that my legs and lungs get on board. I have a few more long runs planned to work on the endurance before time runs out, and if the weather continues to be slightly less sucky road work should begin to feel more normal!

And I will WIN the marathon, just like I normally do!!

So hey you guys? Send me some good training vibes. Maybe some good weather vibes too? I'm ready to get my ninja rockstar mojo back and am happy to enlist the power of positive thoughts.

Hey, I'm BACK!

I'm back! I did indeed vanish again, not only was I too busy to keep up with blogging but honestly you guys- do you really want to hear the following on a daily basis?

"Guys, it's 20 below and snowing like a bitch!"
"Ummmmm you guys? It's cold and there is a fresh foot of snow in my yard...."
"Guess what!? 4th snow day in a row!!"
"I can't find the dogs because the snow is so deep they sink out of sight... Never to be seen again...."
"My view from the treadmill: Limited, because the snow is over the window..."

This was from February 10. The snowbanks are twice this size now.

Since I do not wish to be the boringest blogger who ever penned a boring blog I skeddadled, I hope I was missed greatly.

Since December I have run outdoors 6 times. Two of those times I was either racing or adventure snow running (which is crazy to the max). Twice I ran happily along with Mr. Bradlowski while on vacation (which was lovely, but was vacation running which was for fun and joy and not training.) And more recently- as in yesterday and today- outdoors in my own backyard. Miracle!

This is NOT our backyard but it was while we were on vacation! Vacation running ftw.

Despite the monotony of the indoor running situation, I recognize the fact that if I did not have a treadmill in my house I would simply not have been able to run this winter. So yeah, I am glad to have it. And glad to be off of it, at least until the next storm hits!

So to make this easy and not eye clawingly dull here is the rundown:

February. (You are a horrible person!!)
Weather- Complete bullshit
Running- Challenging but fascinating and always an adventure. Of death... :-)
Health- I caught a vile Floridian death plague and was down and out for a week. Suck-O.
Days until Boston: I think it's 6 weeks away today so that many :-)
Races run: ZERO. As most New Englanders know everything has been cancelled. EV-ER-Y-THING.
Other: Eric and I had a lovely week in Florida. We know how to have a great time and we did! Ironically, it was exceedingly cold while we were there but there was no snow. Nothing can get in the way of our good times! We really had the very best of amazing fun!

Brrrrrrrrrr Florida!!!! Still awesome though.

At this point, despite the monster snowbanks and more bad weather just waiting in the wings Spring really is close. I'm getting excited to run Boston again and will talk more soon (or in a month, we all know the truth!) about my plans, how this training cycle has compared to others in the past year, and how my race week and race plan will be a little different as well.

So hope for the best kids, soon the roads will be completely clear, the snow gone, it will be hot and buggy and muggy and humid and we will all have something different to complain about! (and I can't wait...)