Injuries, education, general tardiness, the word "thirty," and other unacceptable things

Last year I began with a mission statement explaining why I:
a. loathe running
b. must run because I love 826michigan
c. time is a cruel, cruel mistress.

Well guess what happened, folks. I decided that maybe, possibly I don't hate running. In fact, I actually started to crave that feeling when you finish and your entire body is singing and tingling and it rarely feels this good (legally). Then what happened? It started snowing feet of snow, repeatedly and continuously until practically May. Dear readers, I do not run in the snow. In fact, if it wasn't required by my boss that I actually "show up" and "work" for my paycheck I probably wouldn't leave the house while there was snow on the ground. (For the record, I do have to do those things...I know this because I wrote the employee handbook this summer and these things are detailed in the Mandatory section.)

So then what happens when Mother Nature decided she had grown bored of unleashing hell on the masses? I turned 30 shhh. Then I am injured. Ha ha, no running for you, sucker. My right hip was all out of whack, and physical therapy lasted eight (8) weeks. The good news is that I received clearance to run no more than 3.1 miles--woohoo! That is EXACTLY how many miles I need to run!

But then I, being the masochist that I am, decided that I am not quite ready to be done with education and embarked on a very intense course of study to have some more arrogant initials and a pain in the (expletive) registered symbol behind my name. Guess what that leaves me--very little time to run.

But I am back on track! After losing ground I am back up to 24 minutes on hills, nonetheless. Last year I hadn't run 3 miles until August 30th, and while I don't think I'm going to make that benchmark this year, I have high hopes that I'll be there in no time.

Why does ANY of this matter to you? I am sincerely asking you to support my progress and end result because you are ultimately supporting something that is so much bigger than me or any of the things about which I have just rambled: 826michigan.

826michigan is a superphenomenal non-profit organization dedicated to supporting students ages 6 to 18 with their creative and expository writing skills, and to helping teachers inspire their students to write. Our services are structured around our belief that great leaps in learning can happen with one-on-one attention and that strong writing skills are fundamental to future success.

And get this: all their programs, everything, is FREE to students.

Like all non-profits we are struggling in these difficult economic times. But you, you beautiful people, can help! Here's how it works: So I am running my (deleted) off in the Big House Big Heart 2008 5k, about which I now feel something akin to "don't quite want to punch in the face." A portion of my entry fee goes to the U of M Program for Neurology Research & Discovery and Mott Women's and Children's hospitals. Any donations I receive go directly to 826michigan--no red tape. If you'd like to donate, please click on the link that says "donate" (I'm trying to make it simple here, folks). The link will lead you to a 826michigan's donate page, which will lead you to a paypal site so you can use your credit card and don't have to write a check. You will receive a receipt, because your donation to this 501(c)(3) organization is fully tax deductible!

That's it, that's all there is to it. I will continue to update the blog with trials and travails of my training to hopefully keep you entertained and a part of this spectacle. Like last year I'll coerce my teammates (new and improved with a "Ted") to make silly movies with me, try to sneak into restricted property with me, and ultimately run with me on September 28th.

--posts from last year's run are archived below, if you are so inclined.

On forward motion

First of all, I'd like to apologize for my absence, but I have many good reasons for it including this:
What is that? THAT, my friends is this: 826michigan's NEW DOWNTOWN LOCATION! That's right, we have been cooking up something wonderful all summer and couldn't tell anyone until just now. We're breathless and ecstatic. It's by the library and the bus station. Kids from neighboring towns, villages, communal pods can actually get on a bus line that will actually get to us. It's brilliant. This is very, very, very good.

I am up to running 3.3-3.5 miles now. Yes, that's right, more than 5k. Last night I graduated running class, and it was shockingly more emotional than I ever imagined. A group of us decided to continue on--me, continuing running. These people...they're so supportive. And they're running along side me Sunday.

Maybe I'm unnaturally feel-y right now, maybe I haven't had enough sleep (in weeks), but honestly this experience has been much more than one foot in front of the other. So much so that I am choked up writing about it. I can't begin to tell you what it's like to know that it's not just my (awesome) work family who is running with me, it's my new friends, my 826 friends, my Leadership A2 friends, my old but wonderful friends. People ask me all the time, "How's the running going?" You have no idea how much that means to me. This is something I'm so proud of, and it's not because I made it to 3 miles. There is a warmth, and inexplicable warmth. I don't know how I lived without it.

Tonight we're carbing up at Noodles. Tomorrow it's football. Then Sunday I'll be there, with my new running family, at the start and at the finish line. I'll post pictures as soon as I have them.

Thank you, thank you, THANK YOU for your donations to 826michigan. And thank you for all your personal support. It's been incredible, this, and I'll never in my entire life forget my first big run.

I have found my muse.

I ran 5k in what is possibly the world's slowest time, ever, last night. It was discouraging. This morning, however, Fate sent me a remedy to my problem. Meet my muse:

Anytime I feel like I'm not making the grade, all I have to do is think of this fine gentleman, who wished to share my humble abode, and imagine him chasing me.

I. will. run. faster. There is really nothing else to say today.

Last night's tally:
3.1 miles
lots of stretching

/lovely gentleman and I had a smashing time together.

Couple things: I am not 16, and you wish I was talking about knitting.

How many times can they mysterious "they" tell me that stretching is important before I'll learn. Or when I hear that running is a "high-impact" sport, why doesn't that sink in? While I realize that I might have an unnecessarily dramatic fear of turning Voldemort, it IS true that I no longer possess the physical recovery skills of a teenager. My back made that abundantly clear this week. I think the impact and compression really did a number on my lower spine, and for the past couple days I have not been able to bend forward without holding onto something. Bossmanboss from Team Vintage kindly said, "you're old," and while I "appreciate" his candor, I decided that I was going to prove him at least a little bit wrong last night and actually engage in some stretching.

I have one of those giant exercise ball things and at the moment it's a bit deflated, but this may have worked to my advantage. I squooshed the ball under my belly and hung my legs over one side, head over the other, and waited. The first three minutes were agony. It was that type of pain where you're not sure if it hurts but feels good or just hurts. Nonetheless I decided to dangle some more, and after a bit it became comfortable. Also, I appreciate the intricacies of Berber much more than I ever did. Did you know that the origin of Berber dates back to the Paleolithic era? Well it does, and I am newly impressed.

So my stretching + a safe but healthy portion of painkillers relaxed my back, and I feel great today. And I have learned a valuable lesson-- extra strength Vicodin stretching is essential to my comfort and well-being.

Now, about that sweater. In my Binder-O-Info from running class there is a suggestion that you weigh yourself before and after you run. Yes, that sounds like unimaginable torture, and I would NEVER recommend that to any human I know. However, the Binder of Unthinkable Suggestions provides a very valid reason--when you're starting to run you don't always understand that you're doing things incorrectly (see: not stretching). Noticing if you gain or lose a significant amount of weight while you run is an excellent indicator that you're hurting your body in some way.

I lost more than 3 lbs. last night on my run! I am a sweater under any circumstances, and while I was psyched bout the number on the scale, that was not great. Granted it was especially humid and I was on those abominable hills, but someone needs to drink more water. The running coach recommended we get one of those little belt things with the teeny bottles of water if we're running more than three miles, but I'm just not sure I am ready for that level of gear. I wouldn't mind those little gel-pills of hydration--their mere existence is proof that flying cars are only a year or two away, I think.

Tonight it's going to be a million degrees. I am walking/stretching but not running. Thursday is back to class. Hopefully I'll make the 3 mile mark again. I'll wear a watch this time and tell you what the speed stats are. Or...what's the word for the opposite of speed?

If anyone has any suggestions or stories of similar aches and pains, please let me know!

Also, there is no time like the present to donate.

Team Vintage gets denied by DPS

To be fair: we understand completely.






29 days to go...

On running classes

THREE *@#%$^*$ MILES! YES!

I wish I had tracked down the lovely young woman who I ran next to tonight. She was one of the greatest things to happen to me and this running thing, and I didn't manage to get her name. But after we arrived back at Running Fit she said, "You did a really great job tonight," and that meant the world to me. I will beg her to run next to me next week. I RAN THREE MILES.

I am going to finish this race. I could cry I'm so happy.


Please, donate.

I will see you at the finish line.