Running a Marathon is like having a baby.

You ever talk to a mother? Of course you have, but talk to one about having babies. In particular those who actually managed to have a second one. Despite the agony of the first, somehow they still manage to come around and drop another one of the little buggers. It's like the pain from the first time just becomes a fuzzy memory; they remember that it DID hurt, but don't remember what the pain was like. I have often thought this was a defense mechanism built in by God or Darwin to ensure we keep having babies.

I realize that marathons are about the same way. When I think of training for the last marathon, all I think about is how accomplished I felt, and how good it was to run. Right now, as I am training up for #2, it hurts! "It wasn't this bad last time!" screams the voice in my head.

Frankly, he's full of it. I just went back on this very blog to see how I was feeling around Christmas last year. Read this tale of woe!

Now, I remember writing that, and finding the evil Santa pic, but I don't remember the pain! I should actually be rather happy; despite the fact that I did bonk on a 13 miler a couple of weeks ago, I am feeling much better now than I describe this time last year (and to be fair, I think I was coming down with something the morning I bonked), and am even a couple weeks ahead schedule-wise of where I was, so I won't have to cut the Higdon schedule short this time. I did 15 miles last Saturday, and am looking forward to a 16 miler this Christmas Eve. God bless us, every one.

So, I am doubly glad I started this blog. Not only do I get to share my experience with you, I get to remind myself that taking charge of your body isn't always pretty.

But I can look forward to forgetting this pain too!

Turning it up to 11

Thank you Nigel.

Indeed, here we are at week 11, and it was a good week on the road to 26.2. First of all, on Tuesday I played around with some more barefoot running, doing ¾ mile on astroturf sans zapatos, and then did another ¼ mile on the actual hard rubber track. I even sprinted at the end. I tried on and then ordered some Vibram 5 Fingers this week, and think I have come to the decision to focus on seriously building my barefoot run after the marathon. I'll keep you all posted on that.

Wednesday was a good eight miler, but I thought my new Nike+ was hitting blind spots. After my long weekend run though, I think I know what's really going on. See, the Nike+ really just works on a gyro in the sensor- no map or GPS data at all. When you buy it, there's an option to calibrate it, but it says it works for most people. In my test runs it seemed pretty good so I didn't calibrate. I realize now it is slightly off, and what's happening is that small disparity gets exponentially bigger with longer distances. Anything under four is not enough of a loss to be noticeable- eight was nearly a half mile off, and Saturday's long run was over a mile off. Not a big deal, I just need to calibrate it this week. Though, there may be something to be said for thinking I only ran a shorter distance when I really did a longer...

Thursday was neat. Ran two miles with someone from work in the afternoon, then came home and did two and a half miles with Eightball. Did some more sprinting with him, but found out he gets tired around two if I let him do that too much. He too needs to learn to pace himself for distance runs. Plus, we at times have to stop and pick up poo. (Told you I would.)

On the weekend, I was back with my triathlete mentor from week five. As always I end up doing a faster pace with him, but we cut a mean 17 in 2:35. Now, Nike+ read me at 15.7, but the $600 GPS the people who do triathlons feel they need put us near 17. Either way, though it was work at the end, I came out of it with only a little soreness, and feel pretty good the next day. Again, these runs seem to go faster with a partner to talk to. He also mentioned that with the type of miles I am doing weekly, I can drink four pints of Guinness a week completely guilt free- my body will absorb the carbs like a sponge. If someone had told me that ten years ago, I'd be Jesse Owens by now.

Did some tweaking on my training schedule. The Higdon plan I have been following is 18 weeks long, and my race actually falls in week 16. I want to make sure I have a couple of weeks taper before the big run (that's the slowdown that lets your body recover before it all counts). Therefore, I am going for 18 miles this coming Saturday, and 20 the weekend after that. It's going to be a little more of a challenge, but I am feeling up to it. The injuries are quiet, the feet are behaving, and the vibe is good. Lost Dutchman Marathon, here I come!

Now, pardon me while I finish off this Guinness. Yep, that's a good vibe all right...

Eating up week six...

This was a tough week. I had been considering taking it easy this week to let some of the tweaks and aches in my heels and calves lighten up, but I came to realize what my far greater problem is. It's something I learned from this guy in the third grade:


You are what you eat.

See, Monday nights we like to go to the local kid friendly pseudo-bar and watch football while hanging out with friends. Knowing I should have had salad and maybe a beer, I had two (including a tall Guinness) and a Chipotle Chicken sandwich. Yes it was delicious, but come Tuesday morning at 4:30 AM, I felt like the beer and chicken had become anvils which had gone directly to my ass and feet. Keep in mind- I was still thinking it was just time for a rest anyway, so I didn't think too much of it, severely abbreviated my run and went about my day.

That night for dinner, I had lean chicken and vegetable wraps in tapioca paper with salmon sushi. In short, lots of protein and greens, with enough carbs to be fuel. My Wednesday run (which I started out of habit... yes, getting up early and running is in fact getting to be a habit) was five miles, and I felt great. Cue beer and pizza dinner...

Cue really dragging ass again on my Thursday run! I realized dinner had a direct correlation on how I felt on my runs. So Friday night, regardless of being at a Military formal, I boosted up on the carrots and cucumber salad, with some leafy greens as well, and had just a small sampling of beef and fish. Even with the beer to wash it down, my seven miler on Saturday (light week on the Higdon plan anyway) was just fine. Later on I worked on my car, and feeling manly I decided I would run some more, but the Lovely Jennifer made Chili Verde (healthy and delicious) so I tucked that motivation away to use for later.

So, this week's Sesame Street lesson? As the Giuseppe Arcimboldo painting from the 16th Century at the top shows... you are what you eat.

Ow. No really, ow!

Week three- I am on the road, on a business trip to Florida, and in an unfamiliar area, in particular downtown Tampa. Beyond that, my work here means doing my running at 5AM. So, being a scared Southern Arizona hick, the last thing I wanted to do was go running at 5AM in an VERY urban area I don't know at all.

So, I decided to use the treadmill in the hotel.

I used to do treadmills all the time. Having recently learned how to run properly however, my love of the hamster wheel has come to an end. Running just my three miles Tuesday was tedious agony. So (trust me, this is getting us to a point), on Wednesday, I decided I would try something new. I would do the majority of my four miles on the treadmill normally- then I would do two minutes- only two minutes- barefoot.

Barefoot running as a concept is something I discovered reading the MacDougal book "Born to Run." Found out there's a whole cult of barefoot runners, and even some podiatrists are beginning to talk about the wonders of SMART barefoot running. I recently bought a pair of deck shoes- just enough soles to protect the skin, but thin enough to allow your feet to feel the running surface and adapt appropriately. Think about it: if you wear arch supports, you keep the muscles in the arch from ever doing their job. What muscle can you constantly rest and expect to have perform when you need it? In "Born to Run" they even talk about a guy who learned how to barefoot run, and lost two shoe sizes because his arches came back.

The good news is, one of my feet was very ready for barefoot running, and could have done more than the two minutes. The bad news was my injury from six months back in my achilles structure in my right foot was not as healed as I thought.

So, this week was a bit of a set back. My achilles inflamed and hurt all day, and indeed still is achy. I have been icing it every night, and did not run Thursday. Today (Saturday), though scheduled to run five miles (light week on my Higdon plan), just a light jog felt off, so I did five miles of elliptical instead. Going to keep nursing this and see where I am Tuesday when I am scheduled to run again.

Now, though this is a setback, I am not horribly discouraged. My uninjured foot was very ready to try barefooting- I have been wearing the Nike "Free Everyday" shoes which is their cunning plan to get me to pay as much for a shoe with half the padding of a normal set of Nikes. They want in on the Vibram 5 Finger market. They have been a good shoe though, and are getting me weaned off lots of padded thudding shoe which keeps my feet from doing what they are supposed to. I am still convinced I can do it, but I need to work on my tendon in the right foot.

Also, I have flex time built into my schedule- I stated from the beginning my marathon isn't until May, so the Higdon schedule (which wraps up in February) gives me a little more time. I do want to be healthy and not damage my foot.

Lastly, now that I have not been able to run for a few days, I realize that I miss it! I WANT to run! Finally breaking the horrible habits my Firm has instilled in their completely wrongheaded ideas on running is making me into a believer. Had you told me three months ago I would want to go out and run, that I would ENJOY doing five or six miles, I would have called you a dirty liar and kicked you in the knee. Now... it is so.

So, my report this week is not as great as I want it to be, but I am still in the game. You and I will find out together how long it takes Achilles to stop killing the Trojans in my foot (that's a really forced play on words- sorry).

Week one down, and thank you Fatboy Slim.

Well folks, here I am, not even 30 minutes after the end of week one of my Marathon Training... And I think I am still in the game.

I adopted the Hal Higdon Novice training schedule which I thought fit my general level of running fitness based on my recovery. I have been regularly running between 10 and 12 miles a week, and this one starts you off at 15, so not that high a jump, and seemed a challenging progressing without teetering over into crippling stupidity. Several friends (including my good friend Jim- Shout out to my Brothers!) recommended schedule based on running time instead of distance to allow for flexibility in running; i.e. run 30 minutes rather than 3 miles so I can run whatever path my run takes me. Call it being too brainwashed by my firm, but I like a measured schedule. I think I am just used to running my distance so I am sticking with that for now until I do get bored with my trails.

That being said, I did exceed what's on my schedule for week one. Sierra Vista had a cold front come in this week. Tuesday's three miles was no big issue, but it was mighty cold Wednesday morning. I ran my three, but ended up having to be outside longer for a firm-related bit of administration, so to keep warm I ran another two miles. Keep in mind the psychological shift this signifies for me. I ran to increase my comfort level. Weird. Thursday was even colder, so I cheated- got up early, threw on clothes, and before I'd even gotten outside or woken up started running. Thirty-two degrees out, I didn't spend a second in it walking. Ran out the door, ran in the door. But did it!

Friday as you see is rest, and this morning was the week's long run. I did my six, but only parts of it felt as relaxed as I had on the five I did a week ago. The path I ran had a steady uphill for the last two miles, and it was telling on me. Pushed through though, but I realize I need to work more on relaxing my form.

Learning all kinds of stuff from the McDougall book "Born to Run" (which is not, as I initially thought, about Bruce Springsteen). The chapters on hominid running being responsible for us evolving into an intelligent species makes so much sense- if it's junk science, then it's hot rod junk science. The chapter where a Westerner learns to hunt antelope on foot from the Kalihari Bushmen was riveting. As a long time science fiction fan, I have long been of the mind realizing something is possible can make it happen- in other words, young man watches "Star Trek" as a kid, grows up and invents the cell phone (no, seriously), or the iPod (no really, it's in a documentary called "How William Shatner Changed the World" hosted by... well, William Shatner of course). Seeing there are people in the world who can run down an antelope not by speed, but by endurance (they rarely go faster than a 10 minute mile) has opened up my head to amazing possibilities. Our bodies ARE designed to do this, but like a car that we don't drive properly, or don't do maintenance on, they are not performing like they can or should. Maybe that's the Apple in the Garden; sitting and eating instead of going and catching. We've been on the road to damnation ever since.

So there I am, tired but good tired, feeling really positive and looking forward to week two (after my rest days!). Oh- and a quick thanks to Fatboy Slim. As I was dragging myself uphill those last two miles, my iPod switched over to "Funk Soul Brother," which happens to have a beat exactly at my most comfortable steady run pace. I was able to "Right About Now, Check it out now" right up that hill. Word. Maybe next week I'll play "Weapon of Choice" and pretend to be Christopher Walken.