Akron 13.1 - Recap

So, Akron Marathon was almost a full 4 4.5 weeks ago!  I'm slacking! I have written this post 4x...in my head...each time getting a little shorter until now...and I'd like to think it's going to be short and sweet...

As you know, I registered for this half, my favorite race, last year. I was injured 12 weeks prior to race day. Stress fracture. But I was still going. Just not running. But don't think that I didn't have thoughts of actually just doing it. Or trying to do it. So much so that I had to call Training Planner to have her talk me off the ledge of packing my running gear that I would need to run the race. Tears. Big crocodile tears. She talked me down. Reminded me of my goals (SpaceCoast). Told me to not even pack it. So I didn't.  No regrets.

L-R: QuietOne, K2, SpeeDee, Boss Lady, me!

Friday morning Boss Lady (Amy), SpeeDee (Deanna), K2 (Karine), and QuietOne (Beth) (now all to be known as "the girls") all convened at my house for the 3 hour drive to Akron, Ohio. Rubber City. Home of LeBron James. My roots.  I would chauffeur this group for 36 hours. I was to be their tour guide, race prepper, food-finder, shopper, cheerleader, and best of all PHOTOGRAPHER!

And photographer I was!  Check out these EXPO pics....

 

As you can see...lots of photo ops!

SpeeDee ran for me!

After the Expo, we wanted to get a drink and small snack before we headed to the hotel, so we stopped at this cute little place across from the Expo because they had a rooftop deck! I failed to take a picture, but I did get a pic of our drinks!

  

On the way back to the hotel, we needed to make a quick pitstop at my dad's for MarathonMom's (Deb) camera. And I wanted to brag on them by showing off their medals...

some of dad's medals

some of MarathonMom's medals

Admiring MarathonMom's Boston Marathon poster

And then we headed to the hotel after to check in and unwind for a minute. Then back out to get some grub! Panera for SpeeDee and QuietOne (and me); Outback for Boss Lady and K2! And a little shopping at Marshalls...more on that later!

Once back at the hotel and dinner complete, we settled in and I watched the girls get ready for their big debut on on the Blue Line. 

 

QuietOne reviewing race day clothing selection!

Race morning was here before we knew it!  Everyone was up and dressed. Meeting in the lobby. Looking for a toaster. Getting coffee. Bananas. In car and headed to dad's!  Traffic was out of control! Opening the Marathon Relay to more runners allowed for lots more cars. I wish I had gotten a picture of the traffic! SpeeDee and I both commented that the traffic was worse this year!  But dad and MarathonMom knew exactly how to avoid it! 

On the walk to the start line, of course there was talk of what SpeeDee and I have named "Poop Alley", so of course, we shared this information with the rest of the crew. And lo' and behold, as soon as we approached it, they understood without further mention and a posed picture was in order:

Who smiles while grunting? THESE GIRLS! Too funny!

Soon it was time for the group pics... and then off to the races!

Love my girls!

MarathonMom and Dad

I just love the smile on my dad's face!

Then I was racing, literally, for my spot to see them at the START, Mile 3 and Mile almost 10! What. A. Crowd. Sidewalks were blocked. Volunteers wouldn't let me cross. Thankfully, I had my bib pinned on, so I jumped in Corral A on one side and out the other! Race to meet my mom and Terry and get ready to snap! 

And those pictures will be in another post... Which I SWEAR I am going to write and soon as this one is published!

Stay tuned!

Run.Strong.

-t-

Just got real!

I received an email the other day from SpaceCoast for the 1/2 at the end of November.  And it hit me. I need to be training. And running. And more running. Since the SFSF (bleep bleep Stress Fracture) I've had to ease back into running again.  Basically it's like starting all over, except the mind is louder and ever present. 

I've been following a Run/Walk plan. You know, run for X number of minutes, walk for X number of minutes. And repeat for X number of minutes. The plan also calls for cross training and even a long run that is calculated in miles and not minutes, but, still has the run:walk ratio spelled out. I am digging this "run for time, not miles" plan. 

Of course, it has been tweaked just a little for me by Dr. Pat: run 3x and 1 XT vs run 4x and 2 XT. Since I don't want to overuse my foot and to avoid the risk of re-injury and seeing as I'm still in "recovery mode", it makes sense. I'm not doing speedwork. I'm not doing hill repeats (pretty sure FL is flat). I'm not doing tempo runs. I'm basically just running for time. And it feels pretty damn good. 

So as with everything else, the running hasn't been constant. I do what I can when I can. I've ran 6x in the last 3 weeks. I've gone hiking twice. And this past Sunday I did my long run of 7 with the self-understanding that if I got 5-7 miles in I would be okay with that. I got 7.66 miles. Gastrointestinal issues got me at the end. 

 It was a 9:1 run:walk. So I estimated a 15 minute mile (as a cushion only) and figure it to be 10.5 reps. Well, you can't do 10.5 on my watch so instead of rounding down, I rounded up. 11 reps.

Right about rep 8 (3 to go) I was telling myself I could quit. I'd done enough, probably. I said I'd settle for between 5-7,  so I was probably there.   But the reality was, I set out to do 7 miles. My phone wasn't ringing with the boy calling because he was hungry or bored.  Actually phone didn't ring at all. I really had no place to be. Browns weren't on tv. Laundry was started. The sun was shining. It was perfect weather.  Just. Run. It. Tami.  

And I did. And it felt amazing.  When my watch beeped that it was done I was shocked! I did it. And it didn't matter that the pace wasn't fast. All that mattered was that I ran 7.66 miles. And I felt great! 

Now, this morning, yeah I was kinda in some pain.  Some soreness. Stiffness. Chafing in places unmentionable. No pain. No gain. Or as BondiBand sums it up :

So that's where I am. 8 miles up this week for a long run. Easy peasy.  SpadeCoast 13.1 is just a few weeks away... Time to be challenged!

Run. Strong. 

-t-

 

It's R-A-C-E week

Akron. It's just days away...4 at the time I start typing this...

So here are my random thoughts...about this beloved race of mine that I am not running.

• This sucks. I'm okay though. No. I lie. I'm not okay. But I will be okay. Especially come November.
• I know I am doing the right thing by not running. For one, I am not trained. At. All. I cannot go out on that course with a clear mind and know I'm doing the right thing. That would be stupid. Sure, I didn't train for my first half. But I surely had ran more than 4 miles in the weeks leading up to it. Not only the physical "wrongness" of trying to do it, but the mental "wrongness" of it. I know I would end up in tears. Hell, I teared up at mile 2 on the 4Miler on Sunday. Cry for 13.1? No thanks. Don't need to add to the dehydration. 
• I am packing tissues with me when I walk my girls to the start line. It will tears of joy for them. And tears of sadness for me.  I'm happy they are here to experience. But I'm sad that I'm not running it. I sound selfish. But my sadness of not running it is more so because  not running it with MY DAD. You know, like we set out to do 11 months ago.  I guess I can look at it this way...I'm only letting him down and not a team if Speedy-Feet and I had gone on with the relay race and not the 1/2 again. But...it's still sad. 
• The AF Marathon also has a 5k race that is ran on the Friday night before the big races. My booth was positioned just perfectly near a door where I could watch the race. And I did. And I thought about what it would be like to watch the runners at Akron on Saturday. And I looked away. 

I am being absolutely ridiculous. I can tell myself that. But no on else can.

But as I'm finishing this post, 3 pre-race days, I went for a very brisk walk with Boss Lady this evening. And it felt AWESOME!  I could feel my legs and feet craving the attention. They felt alive! I felt alive! And on my way home, I texted Kelly and Aly to see if either of them wanted to do FARRELL Road real quick! (Kelly did it last night and told Aly and me). I had this sudden urge to go see if I could do it! Kelly was literally on her way out the door to go for her walk! SCORE! We walked a little; I ran/jogged a little. 2 1/2 times total! That's up twice, down twice, and half way up once and back down. I think that math is correct.  And it felt AMAZING! Dare I say I missed FARRELL Road?!    Ask me in the morning. I'm icing my foot now as a precaution!  

So all in all, I think I'm gonna be okay. I think I'm gonna get thru this because it have a new goal. And I KNOW I will be back next year at Akron! I. Know. It. 

Run. Strong. 

-t-

P.S. Typed this on my phone...no special effects...sorry for misspellings and ramblings! 

This is where I am.

Almost a month since I've blogged...you probably are thinking my foot fell off by now. It didn't. I still have it. And without a boot.

We went camping over Labor Day. I wore my running shoes as best as I could. Thankfully we were all close together so there wasn't too much walking back and forth between campsites. 

L to R (standing at Corwin Jr.): Yarosh, Corwin Sr, random, Aly, Me

I did keep it elevated. Iced it every chance I got. It was feeling better, but with all the additional walking, I didn't want to overuse it.

I went back to Dr. Pat after the holiday. Boot off. Shoes on. Just do it. More light therapy. More stretching. Okay. I think I got this. Start walking on it. Try 1 mile/4x, see how it feels. I got to 3 miles walking with Boss Lady. At once. Oops. But it was okay.  

Then I worked the Canton City Marathon for BondiBand that weekend. This was my first expo for the fall season. It was a super small expo but a great opportunity to train a new rep, my friend Toni from Cleveland! And a great opportunity to refresh my sales pitch! I wore my compression socks and did my best to not put too much pressure on it. And of course iced it in the evening while I watched the Buckeyes lose :(

Went back to Dr. Pat the following week. Increase my miles (I heard up to 8 miles). Try a run/walk. See how it feels. I know my body. Listen. Come back in 3 weeks. 

More walking with Boss Lady. Couple miles in with Aly. I get sick. It's a sinus thing. Or allergies. But it brought me down.

Fast forward a week.  AF MARATHON EXPO!!!  The expo for the race I will never run.   3 grueling days on my feet. But I survived. And so did the foot! Iced every night. Did not stand with pressure on it. Stretched.  All is good.

Nate and I at finish!

Then to close out the last 3 weeks, Nate and I ran THE Ohio State 4Miler on Sunday. That's 4 miles through THE Ohio State University and finish on the 50 yard line of The Shoe! AHHHHHMAZING! We ran this last year and it was as equally amazing this year.  My dad and Deb came down for the race too! 12,000 runners/walkers.  

Dad and Deb outside The Shoe!

Since I haven't ran much, I knew I was not going to be able to just go out there and do it like I used to. And I was okay with that. I was out there. So I went with a 3 min run/2 min walk. It worked perfectly for the most part. Sometimes the run was longer than 3, sometimes the walk was longer than 2. But I finished. And only 6 minutes slower than last year. My foot hurt at times, but if I adjusted my run, it wouldn't hurt. It's like teaching me to run all over again.

The medal is AWESOME!

After the race, Nate and I went RoadRunner Sports to get the "gait" checked and see if I needed/wanted some new shoes. I did. I'm a sucker for a 25% discount! (don't judge, that's 15% more than my usual VIP discount). I went with the Saucony Guide 7. I switched to a Saucony (Hurricane) last year before Akron and loved them. And bought the new version this past spring and ran in them for quite some time before the injury. So I was concerned that the shoe was to blame. It wasn't. And there isn't much difference:

information courtesy of www.saucony.com

So that about sums up the last 3 weeks. This week is the Akron. I am not running. But I am still participating. And I have a few thoughts on that. Stay tuned.

Run. Strong.
-t-

So it goes...

I was back to see Dr. Pat on Friday. It was a rainy day. Very. Rainy. I took the morning off. I just couldn't handle all the emotions and the feeling of shedding a tear at the slightest thing. PMS? Lack of release of endorphins? Baby boy in HS? Who knows. Probably a combo of it all.

So. Dr. Pat. More light therapy and some ultra sound therapy. Massage/rub/press on my foot. I did not kick him in the face as I almost have the past visits, so that was a WIN. It didn't hurt. Does that mean I am healed???? I don't think so...and I don't think he thinks so either. The swelling is down. But I still have this occasional pain which I can describe as a cramp, but my hesitation in even telling him about it, tells me that the pain isn't a cramp but pain. When they say to listen to your body, listen to your head to. It is usually right. Ugh.

Remember my last post about just wanting to wear matching shoes? 

He asked "what shoes?"  I know he was thinking "she wants to wear her flip flops!" But I didn't; I looked him dead in the eye and said, "my running shoes. Or put my other foot in a boot too cause I am done with this hobbling effect".  "Try it. See how it feels." "Deal. And if doesn't feel good, I will put the boot back on. Promise." "Okay."

So I did. And I went to work. And I would get up to go to the printer, or the bathroom, or the kitchen to get some water. And it was different. Not wearing shoes for 2 weeks on BOTH feet and then wearing them for the first time is, well, difficult. I was still hobbling. I was scared. Truth be told. Scared. Scared I was doing more harm than good. And for what? My mood? My sanity?  I kept it on. I was very careful. I walked very gingerly.  I knew I would be at Nate's football game that night and would most likely be sitting for a good part so keeping the shoes on wouldn't be a big deal. Wrong. I had to take the shoe off as it felt as though my foot was swelling. It wasn't. I still took it off. And when I got back out to the car, I put the boot on and felt better. I. Am. Crazy. 

I wore the boot all weekend too (except when I mowed the grass (SHAME!) and Nate and I had our pictures taken up in Tipp). And I am still wearing the boot today.  And that is okay. It feels better. It's still annoying. But I know I am doing the right thing by wearing it. My foot needs to heal. It HAS to heal. I have 2 BondiBand expos in September. I will be on my feet for long periods of time. 

I know I am not running, or even walking Akron. I'm getting closer to coming to terms with that. It's hard. 

In the meantime, I have some exercises to do... 

a little of this...

Toe grabbing a towel

....some of this crazy stuff...

Toe separators to stretch the metatarsals

 

...stretch the calves...

Slant board. And squatting too!

...and of course...

ICE IT! ELEVATE IT!

...and keep looking like this...

It is what it is. I go back after Labor Day. 

Run. Strong. Match or not.
-t-

Shoes!

*I'm sorry if this post grosses some people out...it is all pictures of my feet, and talking about my feet, and well, my feet.*

There are 2 things I look forward to right at this moment and I am not sure which ranks first, but one can't happen without the other, so I guess they go hand in hand...or foot in foot... dumb joke.

1. Shoes. I cannot wait to get this stupid boot/sandal/orthopedic shoe off my foot.I  cannot wait to wear normal, everyday, MATCHING shoes. This damn black boot/sandal/orthopedic shoe is driving me crazy. I hate it. I am over it. I know it's working and it's keeping my foot "rigid" and not bending so that stress fracture(s) can heal. But it's annoying. It's not fashionable. It's not cute. Cute toes were cute in the beginning and it made me feel a little better about the ugly boot, but again, I am over it. I want matching shoes on again. And don't even suggest I get another black boot/sandal/orthopedic shoe to match my other shoe. One is hard enough to walk in...I can't even imagine what it would be like to walk with one on each foot. Over. It.  

I love these flips. Cute little starfish.

 Yes, I tried on my shoes yesterday. I did not walk or move with a real shoe on the left foot. It didn't really even touch the ground, and if it did, it was lightly and for show only. Point is, I DID NOT WALK. 

My favorite around the house/yard/slipper kind of shoes

  

 

Seriously, do you see how ridiculous I look with one real shoe and one black boot/sandal/orthopedic shoe.  

 Oh, and don't even think for a minute it looks any better with running shoes!

2. Run or Walk. But mostly running. No, it's walking too. I cannot wait until I can run a short distance or walk a long distance. And by long, I mean around the grocery store. To lunch at work. Go shopping. Walk to BFFAE's house or Aly's (both of which are 6 houses in either direction of mine) instead of driving. Oh, and running. OMG. I honestly don't think I have had a good night's sleep since I had to STOP doing any sort of cardio that would put body weight on my foot. You don't realize how much a workout affects your sleep, until you can't do one and you can't sleep. At least not soundly.  I can't wait to start to run, even if it's 4 minute walk, 1 minute RUN. Just to go and feel my heart beat again. To release these endorphins.  I must admit, I put my running shoes on too. 

I wanted to know what it felt like to have 2 running shoes on. I was curious how I would feel emotionally. Concerned that I had lost the "running bug".  Would I still be excited about matching shoes? Would I still want to run?

And the answer was YES! I almost cried. It was relief. I still wanted to run. I got excited about being able to run. And soon I hoped. It felt amazing to have a running shoe on that left foot. I instantly felt lighter. Like all my pain and burdens and worries were gone. 

It's true...

courtesy of Pinterest

...and when you can't run, like I haven't been able to, my head feels all bogged down.  

I. Cannot. Wait. 

 

I am going to be slow as %*@$ , but I don't care. I will be out there. And maybe it will be good to be slow. Maybe it will be good to start fresh and new.  I know my head will be happy to start running again. I have goals. I'm writing them daily. I'm reading them daily.  I'm tired of feeling lazy, and well, tired.

Black flip; matches the black boot/sandal/orthopedic shoe

Hopefully come Friday, I can come out of this one black boot/sandal/orthopedic shoe and wear a matching pair of real shoes. Hopefully come Friday, I won't have to look like this...

And if not, and I am still in this one black boot/sandal/orthopedic shoe, well...I will play dress up and sit with matching shoes on in my living room and keep on keeping on.

 Run. Strong.Look ridiculous.

-t-

 

A few days later...

I was back to the ahhhhhmazing Dr. Pat today for a follow-up with this stress fractured foot of mine. I armed myself with a notebook of questions as I wanted to make sure I got as much information as I could about what a stress fracture is, how long is my recovery, what can, and can't, I do as far as walking and so on...

Questions asked and answered. Some tears shed (he doesn't like crying I found out). A little light (a red light at that) therapy. Nice little foot massage (okay, more like a push/rub/poke/scrape massage, but nonetheless felt good).  Another appointment made in 10 days. 

And how do I feel?

Better. Especially since I was able to lay on the roller table and roll out my back. This boot really makes one walk funny and throws out the hips. I've been aching since last week! 

But more importantly hearing that I may, and a heavy emphasis on may, be able to start running lightly, and by that I mean like walk 4 minutes, run 1 minute, maybe at the end of August.  Is Akron completely out? Maybe not.  But am I going to chance it if it means I could re-injure and not be able to run Space Coast at Thanksgiving?? No. I won't. If I do not have his 100% confidence that I am good, to even walk and run it (with more walk than run), then I won't.  I just won't do it. 

I am permitted to go back to my total body class with the understanding that I am to put no pressure on my foot. So I'm trying to figure out if that would be worth it right now... It's a tough call. Little is better than none, right?  I have still been doing my weights and abs at home in the morning. 

On another front, the boy turned 14 this week! He also had freshman orientation today! 

And got his HS football jersey! STUD!

I talked to my dad tonight and filled him in on what Doc said and he said that it's not worth the re-injury at Akron for Space Coast. He will do another half. So while I'm not saying I will do it, I'm not saying I won't. It's a "wait and see". Either way, I will be there. Either running with them, or cheering them on!  

Oh, and I shall not forget to mention the jesting I have received from my near and dear friends... Oh it's been fun. And I have laughed. A lot. And they continue to park in parking spots so far out you'd think it was Black Friday. But they've succeeded in making me feel "normal".  And I figure I can milk it for one more week and get a scooter to grocery shop! 

Training Lady and her youngest daughter brought me a little pick me up on Saturday. It was such a treat and Reese's card brought the biggest smile to my face! 

The boot may be ugly, but I've got pretty toes! 

Thank you to EVERYONE for the encouraging words on the last post, the texts, and phone calls. It really meant a lot to me and helped me gain perspective of it all. 

 

So keep running friends. I will be back soon enough to join you!

Run. Strong. 

-t-