Sometimes, All You Need is a Little Bit*

This morning, my 5 a.m. alarm sounded way too early, which was surprising, considering I actually got into bed at just after 9, and I turned off the lights and put down this month's issue of Outside magazine by 9:30. Still...I barely crawled out of bed by 6:45, which meant my plan of 4-5 miles (approx. 48 minutes) of tempo run were foiled. I contemplated skipping the run, but something in me was not having it--it's like my Asics** were calling me, begging me to to take them out for a run. So, I got ready and headed out the door for what I had planned on as a hard, 30-minute tempo run.

Well...I got a bit ahead of myself, and as I ran hard towards Browne's Addition, I realized that my pace would absolutely not be maintained for the full 30, so I turned my run into an unstructured interval run. I pushed the pace hard for as long as I could sustain it, and then slowed it up (to a walk at some points), and repeated until I was back home. The reward: the sense of accomplishment that you feel after a completed run, about 300 calories burned, a bit more speed work (which I need), and leftover blueberry-oatmeal pancakes with Adams Crunchy Peanut Butter and a blackberry fruit spread.

*As I wrote the title of this post, all I could think about was the 50 Cent song, but I couldn't bring my self to write "Lil Bit."

**I currently rotate two pairs of shoes (well, 3, but more on that later) for running. The Asics are the Gel Kayano 14's, acquired at Runners Soul. These are by far my best looking running shoes--with a bronze/platinum metallic pattern. Whatever it takes to get you on the trail.

The Motivating Power of Shame*

The 4th of July. The day America celebrates its independence from England. Incredibly hard to believe now that a tiny country that gave us Shakespeare, blood pudding, and David Beckham once controlled Colonial Americans.** Harder still to believe is that many Americans probably have no idea what year America celebrated its first Independence Day (hint: it did not involve aliens and Will Smith). Americans associate Independence Day with barbecues, federal holidays, apple pie, sunshine, and fireworks. Americans do not associate Independence Day with running.

So, it was incredibly challenging on the morning of the 4th (Saturday) to get out of bed as early as I would on a workday to run "six to seven miles" or 72 minutes.*** I slept a bit later than I would have liked (6:30 instead of 5:30), laced up my Asics, grabbed my water bottle and tucked it into my running belt, brushed my teeth, put on my sunscreen, and headed west towards downtown Spokane and the Centennial Trail.**** I felt strong on the run--pushing myself, waving at other runners, trying to maintain an easy, even pace needed for my long, slow run. I incorporate several very short walk breaks into my long runs, as long runs are supposed to be slower, their purpose being to get your body used to so much time on your feet. Allegedly, run breaks not only allow you to catch your breath and grab a little water/gel without choking and/or pouring your water/gel all over your face and clothes, but they also help pull (push?) the lactic acid out of your muscles to allow you to run longer. When I started really running just over a year ago, I felt guilty, ashamed even, of taking walking breaks. In truth, I still feel a little of that, and I will extend the time between walking breaks on long runs if it means I can run past other runners, walkers, senior citizens on bikes.*****

This walking shame is about vanity, of course. But, in reality, I am out running more miles before breakfast on a Saturday morning than most people ever run in a row, period. But, walking shame is not the point of this post...this post is about the shame of quitting, of failure.

I always tell people that I am afraid of two things--aging and failure. In reality, I just hate both of them. My type-A(+) personality cannot deal with failure very well. So, while I, like most Americans, do not associate Independence Day with running, I do associate a missed long run as a failure on a small scale that could mean failure on a large scale (not being able to run the Portland Marathon in October). Certainly a portion of that fear is related to feeling as if I have let myself down, but it's more about the shame associated with telling people that I missed too many runs and therefore cannot run the Portland Marathon this year because, as anyone training for any big race knows, everyone knows about it. Everyone. Friends, family, co-workers, ex-boyfriends, the person who sells you coffee on weekday mornings. I cannot handle the shame associated with telling people that I am not running Portland because I quit or was lazy or just could not commit to the training. I ran Nike last year with a broken foot, partly because everyone knew I was training for it.

I am not hard core. I run because I am ashamed. And, I am not ashamed to admit it.

*I know I have not really been updating this, but please check back, as I will be filling in some of the gaps here soon (between October and now).

**One of these is not a good thing.

***My current Beginner Marathon Training Plan has all of these runs of between x and y miles.

****While a running belt resembles a fanny pack, it is not one. It is not worn by tourist to hold camera and currency; it holds in place a water bottle (think about running and holding a water bottle for miles in the heat) and tends to have pockets for keys, gels, phones, tissues, etc. that you might need on a long run. Okay, so it's totally a fanny pack.

*****This last one will be the subject of a later post.

Tech-Free (Run 77)*

This afternoon, I acquired a new pair of running shoes. I have been alternating between my Saucony ProGrid Omni 6 Ultimates and my Asics Gel Kayano +14s, but the Sauconys are my preferred shoe for longer runs.** Unfortunately (or fortunately), the Sauconys have over 300 miles on them, and as the race is still 7+ weeks away, I needed to start breaking in a new pair. So, I headed to Runner's Soul, right across Wall Street from my office, to get a new pair of the Sauconys.

After a bit of abuse, er, help from Cory (who sold me the Asics after a failed Nike purchase), I left with a new pair of Saucony ProGrid Omni 7 Ultimate (apparently, the 6s have been replaced). I figured I would test them on my run tonight. The shoes felt great, and I had a great 40+ minute run.

However, this was my first run in sometime that was not assisted by my Nike+ pace/distance/etc. monitor, as I forgot the receiver-insert that plugs into my iPod. It was surprisingly nice to run without hearing the time intervals called out, although my Type-A personality was mentally calculating my pace based on song length (the run wasn't completely tech-free) on perceived distance.

*I thought about quoting a line from "Ayo Technology" by 50 Cent feat. Justin Timberlake as the title, but I wasn't sure how many readers would catch it given the relatively poor showing of 50's "Curtis" album.

**I love the Asics for speed-work and shorter runs, but I don't feel as if they give me enough support on long runs.

Trust the Training Schedule (Runs 34 & 35)

Run 34 was schedule for Thursday (June 26). I worked a long day, so I planned on running Friday morning (even though my long run was scheduled for Saturday morning--usually Friday is a rest day). I ended up running in 80 degree heat, Friday night, battling the Hoopfest set-up crowd (which included a set of guys in matching jumpsuits who appeared to be closely watched while they worked). The run itself was not too bad, but in a desire to go out to dinner, I ended up barely stretching, and I didn't hydrate well enough post-run.

I slept later than I planned on Saturday (I was not intending to go to team practice this week), so I couldn't run through the park and downtown, as it was covered with basketball courts and around 200,000 people. So, I ran down Riverside towards People's Park and over into Peaceful Valley. The route was very hot and very hilly, and I struggled to maintain a decent pace. It was around 85 degrees. I managed to get in 54 minutes of running, according to Nike+.* I did stretch and hydrate after, but I would not count that as a quality run.

*I alternate between a pair of Asics and a pair of Sauconys. I bought two little pouches from Grantwood Technology so that I could use the Nike+ sensor with my iPod and not run in Nikes. The pouches lace to your shoes and seem to work great. They are around $6, and they are available on Amazon.

Asics, Carb Bomb, Running Shorts, Anonymous Donors, and Power Songs (Runs 20 & 21)

Week 4 of training is officially done. I now have 19 more weeks until my race (October 19, 2008). So, I'm basically 1/6 of the way done, and as of today, I am just over 1/5 of the way to my fundraising goal of $4,000. So, I'm right on track.

I had previously mentioned my acquisition of a new pair of Nikes (in my spastic runner post). After two test runs, I had to take them back. The shoes just felt too big and bulky and awkward as I had Clydesdale's hooves instead of little running feet. So, after a bit of harassment from Cory at Runner's Soul and 6-8 pairs of shoes tried on, I settled on the Asics Gel Kayano 14. They are less bulky than the Nikes and less "motion control" than the Sauconys that I've put close to 200 miles on (I acquired those BEFORE I started training for the Nike Half-Marathon). I tested them on Run 21 (an easy, recovery run), and they felt pretty good. I'll test them again today on Run 22, which is a 40 minute training run. If these don't work, I'm just going to get a second pair of the the Sauconys.

On Saturday I did Run 20, which was a long run of around 5 miles. This was the first run where I tested any kind of nutrition product. I have been pretty leery of sugar pre-run, so at the recommendation of Cory at Runner's Soul, I tried the Apple-Cinnamon Carb Bomb Gel. I had about 1/2 of the packet at the 40-minute mark of my run. It tasted like the filling in an apple donut, so I liked it. I also liked that my stomach didn't feel upset while I finished the run. I'm going to test the Hammer Gel, Clif Power Shot, and Gu gel in the next few weeks to see what I like best and what my stomach tolerates. I ran in the rain on Saturday, which was pretty great actually. People stare at you as if you are a pretty hardcore athlete when you are running in the rain. While that may not be true, I liked the feeling of being hardcore. Fake it 'til you make it, right?

I have also been testing running shorts. As I am barely 5'2" (or, not quite 5'2"), the shortness of running shorts isn't an issue, but rather the length of the rise. To put it bluntly, many of the running shorts that I've tried seem to have an extra-long crotch. While I guess that could be handy for storing nutrition gels, I don't need to look anymore awkward than I already do while running. I have found that the Nike Sister Tempo Shorts have a lower rise and a more flattering fit on my short self. However, pretty much everyone sells the Nike Tempo shorts, but not the Sister Tempo shorts. The regular tempos have a long inseam and look generally ridiculous on me.

In addition, all the running shorts that I've tried have what I like to call the running diaper. This is the built in liner that I assume is comparable to what is inside a pair of men's swim trunks. The only plus to the "diaper" is that it has a key pocket. Other than that, it feels and looks as if it belongs over a pair of depends. I am not so concerned about my race pace that I need to wear adult diapers when I run. So, I am also going to be testing the Patagonia "body line" of workout gear to see if it's a better option. At the least, it looks better (like girl's swim bottoms).

Finally, I received another "anonymous" donation the other week for $100. I have a hunch who it is from, but thank you anonymous donor.

[Also, my current "power song" is "Tick Tick Boom" by The Hives--just what I need when that run gets a little too hard.]