Today is Vol. 11 of “Marathon Mommas.” Come along as we follow two women — Theressa Miller and Christine Vassen — in their quest to run their their first marathon in the spring.  Each week, they’ll give us a glimpse into their training and mindset as they push themselves toward 26.2.

By Theressa Miller

Saturday was a day that Mother Nature and Mom Guilt tried to stop our run.  However, rearranging and preplanning helped in both areas.

In my home, my husband works most Saturdays. This is normally OK, but this weekend I had a working husband, 13 miles to run, a birthday party and a basketball game.

Now multiply that by two more women, each with their own specific set of mom challenges.Between the three of us, we have seven children with the oldest being 7 and the youngest 18 months.  But, our motto really has become — plan life around running.

This weekend called for a high of 24 degrees along with winds. We knew we were going to need layers. Christine noted that it was 14 degrees when we started out.

Before we hit the road all I could think about was our limited time frame — three hours to run, shower & get out of the house by 1:30 to be to a game at 2 p.m., etc.

But, then, the magic of running took over.  We had not run together in two weeks so each of us gave each other a rundown of the last two weeks — kids, jobs, husbands, runs, gym talk, visits and the advice of Dr. Y (who made running possible this weekend).

Except for one steep, nasty hill that Christine charged up, we were together most of the entire run. We chatted when we could, but it seemed like someone was always pushing the pace.

It was a lot of fun.

Two miles from the house I started to get antsy. Our other running partner wanted to know about how far we had left. Christine told the poor woman “an hour and 2 short hills left.”

I wanted to throttle her.

The hills were nasty and it was less that 30 minutes of running.

I could feel my calves cramping but I still had those two short steep hills to climb and then Eminem came on my iPod.  “Lose Yourself” just has the right beat and meaning and attitude.

I called “gut run.”  Actually “gut run” is what Christine heard; I said “see you at the hill.”

I love that feeling. My lungs feel open. My legs don’t even feel like they are putting out any effort. My shoulder square. I have “lost myself.” (I try not to think about the fact that this feeling is coming after 11.7 miles of running already.)

For about a mile, I am somewhat alone, both of them are a few feet from me, not even a tenth of a mile. But I need to get up those hills.

The first one was the steepest. I ran it and let out a guttural cry. Power. Repeat Eminem.

Hill number two hurts more and now I can hear Christine right behind me.

“Halo” by Beyonce comes on. WOW that is a slow song.

Christine blows by me.

I finally grab a better song but my moment is over.  I see her finish about a minute before me.  She put about a tenth of a mile between us. I finish with a little less of a skip in my step, but it is a good finish.

Our other partner finished a moment later.

Our pace was 13 flat for 13.7 hilly miles. This pace is not for Heather or Dr. Y, but it’s our pace and it is great!  We were just under a 13 miles for a very flat half marathon at Presque Isle in September. Now, four and a half months later we are holding our pace even after throwing in the hills.  Cool.

TO BE CONTINUED …

I have a few recurring foot injuries that crop up from time to time. I’ve never been officially diagnosed or sought professional help because, frankly, I don’t know where to go (or if my insurance will cover it) and both problems typically go away with rest…which would indicate that they are overuse injuries.

One is a morton’s neuroma (my self-diagnosis) and involves an incredibly sharp/pinching pain between the third and fourth toes on one foot. I notice that this happens most often if I wear shoes that are too tight for me. It typically takes a day or two to subside.

The other recurring injury is a pain in my inside arch of the foot — something I’m suffering through right now. I felt it coming on 1/2 way through a 6 mile run on Sunday (following a 10-miler on Saturday).

Googling around and checking my symptoms would lead me to believe it’s posterial tibial tendonitis. It calls for rest, ice and compression as a first step in treatment — that’s always worked in the past. It’s hard for me to do nothing (and I mean nothing…aerobics hurts, walking hurts, standing hurts) for days on end, but…with complete rest it usually goes away within a week.

I’m hoping the cause of the PTT is wearing my high heel boots I’ve come to love this winter. I’m praying it’s not something more…or a more permanent problem.

For now, I rest….restlessly.

Check this out — something to think about when you’re running in the teen temps this weekend:

Ottawa, CANADA - Snow, wind, ice and sub-zero temperatures: world-record-holding adventurers Ray Zahab and Kevin Vallely will try to withstand them all during a daring attempt to run the 650-kilometre frozen length of Siberia’s Lake Baikal in 10 days or less. Beginning March 1, 2010, the two men will run 60 to 70km per day, unassisted by skis or any support crew and pulling 100-pound sleds behind them carrying food, clothing, shelter and survival gear, across the world’s deepest and most mysterious freshwater lake.

But the two Canadians are attempting more than just a record-setting and safe crossing. With Siberia still in the grips of winter, the adventurers will brave the ice of Baikal to raise awareness of the worldwide scarcity of clean water and inspire young people to push beyond their perceived limitations. The i2P expedition team will use the BGAN satellite communication device provided by Stratos Global to blog, post photos, upload videos, and even stream live video conferencing into classrooms across North America, providing a unique learning experience to upwards of 8,000 students. During the expedition, students will be able to see, speak to, and hear the pair in real-time, all the while learning about clean drinking water issues around the world. People around the world can also be part of the experience by logging on to www.SiberianX.com.

The Siberian Express journey is the latest expedition for impossible2Possible, a non-profit organization founded by Zahab that uses adventure as a platform to educate, inspire, and empower tomorrow’s leaders. Lake Baikal contains about 20 per cent of the world’s surface fresh water and is the world’s largest freshwater lake by volume. It’s been designated a UNESCO World Heritage Site and by running across the ice-covered surface of one of the earth’s most treasured and fragile lakes, Zahab and Vallely hope to teach students about the history, chemistry, biology, culture, and the central role clean drinking water has played in all cultures and civilizations.

In 2007, Ray and two others ran for 111 consecutive days across the scorching Sahara – a run of 7,500 kilometres that was turned into a Matt Damon-produced documentary titled “Running The Sahara.” The journey opened Zahab’s eyes to the problems faced by those without access to clean drinking water. Having already run across the world’s largest desert and, in January 2009, having made the fastest unsupported trek to the South Pole, crossing this majestic beauty seemed like a logical next step in his efforts to raise awareness for social and environmental issues around the world.

Beyond the classroom, Zahab and Vallely will use the impossible2Possible website to bring their message to people around the globe and raise money for clean drinking water projects. Participating schools have been challenged to organize fundraisers and help complete 2 clean drinking water projects in Africa through Ryan’s Well Foundation and GivingWater.org.

They will also teach youth that anything is possible. Less than 10 years ago Zahab was a pack-a-day smoker living a sedentary lifestyle. Now an accomplished adventurer and ultra-marathoner, he says his life philosophy is that we are all capable of the extraordinary in our own lives.

“I truly believe that we as humans can do anything we set our minds to. That’s what I want today’s youth to believe. Through hard work and dedication anything is possible,” says Zahab.

The Siberian Express For Water is the first leg of the impossible2Possible Twenty10 H2O Initiative. In mid-April the second stage of the i2P World Expedition Series will take place in the North African country of Tunisia. This expedition will see a select group of i2P Youth Ambassadors run and trek across 200 miles of this incredibly diverse landscape over a span of 10 days. This journey through the northern Sahara where clean drinking water can be a scarce commodity will contrast the abundance found in Lake Baikal.

About impossible2Possible:
impossible2Possible(i2P) is a 501c3 U.S. Non-profit and currently awaiting approval for Canadian Charitable status. i2P’s mission is to enable youth to reach beyond their perceived limits, and to use adventure as a platform to educate, inspire and empower our global community to make positive change.
www.impossible2Possible.com

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Check this out — something to think about when you’re running in the teen temps this weekend:

Ottawa, CANADA - Snow, wind, ice and sub-zero temperatures: world-record-holding adventurers Ray Zahab and Kevin Vallely will try to withstand them all during a daring attempt to run the 650-kilometre frozen length of Siberia’s Lake Baikal in 10 days or less. Beginning March 1, 2010, the two men will run 60 to 70km per day, unassisted by skis or any support crew and pulling 100-pound sleds behind them carrying food, clothing, shelter and survival gear, across the world’s deepest and most mysterious freshwater lake.

But the two Canadians are attempting more than just a record-setting and safe crossing. With Siberia still in the grips of winter, the adventurers will brave the ice of Baikal to raise awareness of the worldwide scarcity of clean water and inspire young people to push beyond their perceived limitations. The i2P expedition team will use the BGAN satellite communication device provided by Stratos Global to blog, post photos, upload videos, and even stream live video conferencing into classrooms across North America, providing a unique learning experience to upwards of 8,000 students. During the expedition, students will be able to see, speak to, and hear the pair in real-time, all the while learning about clean drinking water issues around the world. People around the world can also be part of the experience by logging on to www.SiberianX.com.

The Siberian Express journey is the latest expedition for impossible2Possible, a non-profit organization founded by Zahab that uses adventure as a platform to educate, inspire, and empower tomorrow’s leaders. Lake Baikal contains about 20 per cent of the world’s surface fresh water and is the world’s largest freshwater lake by volume. It’s been designated a UNESCO World Heritage Site and by running across the ice-covered surface of one of the earth’s most treasured and fragile lakes, Zahab and Vallely hope to teach students about the history, chemistry, biology, culture, and the central role clean drinking water has played in all cultures and civilizations.

In 2007, Ray and two others ran for 111 consecutive days across the scorching Sahara – a run of 7,500 kilometres that was turned into a Matt Damon-produced documentary titled “Running The Sahara.” The journey opened Zahab’s eyes to the problems faced by those without access to clean drinking water. Having already run across the world’s largest desert and, in January 2009, having made the fastest unsupported trek to the South Pole, crossing this majestic beauty seemed like a logical next step in his efforts to raise awareness for social and environmental issues around the world.

Beyond the classroom, Zahab and Vallely will use the impossible2Possible website to bring their message to people around the globe and raise money for clean drinking water projects.  Participating schools have been challenged to organize fundraisers and help complete 2 clean drinking water projects in Africa through Ryan’s Well Foundation and GivingWater.org.

They will also teach youth that anything is possible. Less than 10 years ago Zahab was a pack-a-day smoker living a sedentary lifestyle. Now an accomplished adventurer and ultra-marathoner, he says his life philosophy is that we are all capable of the extraordinary in our own lives.

“I truly believe that we as humans can do anything we set our minds to. That’s what I want today’s youth to believe. Through hard work and dedication anything is possible,” says Zahab.

The Siberian Express For Water is the first leg of the impossible2Possible Twenty10 H2O Initiative. In mid-April the second stage of the i2P World Expedition Series will take place in the North African country of Tunisia.  This expedition will see a select group of i2P Youth Ambassadors run and trek across 200 miles of this incredibly diverse landscape over a span of 10 days.  This journey through the northern Sahara where clean drinking water can be a scarce commodity will contrast the abundance found in Lake Baikal.

About impossible2Possible:
impossible2Possible(i2P) is a 501c3 U.S. Non-profit and currently awaiting approval for Canadian Charitable status.  i2P’s mission is to enable youth to reach beyond their perceived limits, and to use adventure as a platform to educate, inspire and empower our global community to make positive change.
www.impossible2Possible.com

The weather forecast is calling for temps in the teens this weekend. Brrrr…. If you’re among the die-hard outdoor runners, you’ll want to throw on an extra pair of tights (I hear this is especially important for the men) and…get yourself some Hot Hands.

I blogged about them on my Life & Her Times blog yesterday. Read all about it here.

Active.com had an article in their e-newsletter this week entitled, “Can Running Keep a Cold Away?”

If you read my previous post you’d see the obvious answer to that question, but…I clicked and read it anyway.

As I expected, the article says that running can help boost your immune system which can help KEEP you from getting sick, but..it won’t help you get over a cold faster. Colds just have to run their course.

Mine is apparently running a marathon.

Now, the question becomes….do I continue running through it? I always have soldiered through, but I wonder….is running making it harder for my body to kick this cold?

According to the article, it could be. What I should probably do is rest up, take it easy and give my body the time it needs to get better. (But, frankly, it’s not good for my mental health — or the safety of those around me — to not run at all.)

So…the bottom line is that you can’t run off a cold, but you might be able to outrun one.

Here’s hoping the viruses running around Erie don’t catch you!

Three runs this weekend…three totally different experiences:

Run 1 — Slip sliding away

I don’t normally run on Fridays — typically it’s a rest day for me, but with the kids sleeping at my mom’s (no school on Friday), I couldn’t pass up the opportunity to run outdoors.

I probably should have passed since it was a virtual black-ice skating rink out there and I hadn’t received my new “get-a-grips” (and had tossed the broken Yak Trax).  I did the best I could. I slipped a few times, but never fell. It was a slow & frustrating run. I was excited and wanted to run free & hard, but was stuck going slow and cautious.

Run 2 – The good

Saturday morning I met up with a bunch of friends & we ran around Findley Lake (5 miles) twice and then added on two more miles for a total of 12 miles. It was me, the husband, Louise, Fred B., Mike V., Jan C. and Mike’s friend, Randy.

It was a cool run — figuratively and literally — when we left our house, the temp said 28 degrees, but in Findley Lake the outdoor temperature at the firehall said it was 12 degrees. Brrrr….  And, the lake was frozen, so…that added a bit of chill to the air, too.

Nevertheless, 1/2 a loop into it, I was sweating and peeling off my 2nd pair of mittens.

Findley Lake has changed so much since I used to hang out there as a teen — it’s so much more upscale and quaint and hip.

We ran into several other people running and walking, snowmobilers, saw lots of ice fisherman and it seemed that every car that passed us had skis on the roof and a friendly driver who waved at us as he/she passed.  As we ran by the general store, a man was coming out with his two dogs and the owner/employee(?) was making a fuss saying goodbye to the dogs and giving them treats.

It struck me as an active, “crunch granola” community that I’d like to spend more time in. We’re definitely planning to do some more Findley Lake loops. Summer would probably be beautiful and…fall as well.

We ran consistent miles — ranging from 7:50 to 8 minute miles — fast enough to keep us warm. I struggled a bit due to sore calves from step class & sore quads from Body Pump class…silly me..trying to do it all in one week) and was glad to be done at 12 miles. Especially since they reminded me that I had signed Dan & I up to run a 10K in the next morning (ugh).

Some photos:

Run 3 — The really, really ugly

Dan had given me his cold. I felt it coming on Friday and it hit me full force on Saturday night (could it have to do with my running my body ragged???).

Sunday morning, I woke up with a raw throat, a pounding headache and enough snot to fill a box of Kleenex, but..I’d signed up for the Big White Trailer “Hangover Hustle” — a 4-part marathon — and the first part was Sunday at 10 a.m. And…dang it…I was going!

It was only 5-miles, I thought. I can do 5 stupid miles in my sleep.

Only it was 5 very hilly miles in McKean…and it was freezing cold and very windy… and it had started raining … and every muscle in my body ached.

I almost turned around at the first mile, but….I’m nothing if not determined.

So, I finished, but it was, by far, the worst race I’ve ever had in my life — I even walked a few times (I don’t think I’ve ever walked in a race before).

When my husband came by after the turn around, he held out his hand for me to hit. I flat out ignored him. I just couldn’t bear the fact that he was going to get this miserable race over before me…and I blamed him for the cold.

In the end, I finished in 56 something — a far cry from my usual 48 minutes, but…whatever. It was done. And, I honestly wanted to get in the car, cross my arms, turn the heater on full blast and go home.

But, I can’t be that antisocial and …really, if I have a crappy race, who do I have to blame but myself, right? So…I joined the little party in the Evanoff’s barn and had a few cups of cocoa and chatted around the little propane fire.

The next part of the Big White Trailer “Winter Marathon in 4 Parts” is in Feb. Tentatively the 20th and I hear it’s a 10 mile race…followed by a short break..followed by a 5 mile race. So…essentially, a 15-mile race.

Here’s hoping this God-awful head cold clears up by then!

Results from the BWT Hangover Hustle are here (but don’t hold them against me!).

…you get a babysitter so you can get up early Sunday morning and go for a 9-mile long run.

My husband, Dan, and I rarely run together. This is primarily because we have kids and one of us has to be with the kids while the other one runs. Like many two-runner couples, we do a lot of tag-team parenting and exercising.

Another reason we don’t run together is because he’s faster and stronger than me and it annoys me…which is pretty funny because I run with lots of people who are faster and stronger than me and it doesn’t bother me, but…him I want to kick.

But, our lives (like everyone’s, I’m sure) are crazy busy. Rarely do we have time to spend alone together, date nights are few & far between, conversations are typically limited to daily life stuff (you’re picking up the kids tomorrow, right? Don’t forget the carpet guy is coming at 4:30, etc., etc.) before we both fall asleep on the couch, exhausted.

I know the familiar intimacy that running partners share. You become the best of friends if for no other reason that you end up talk about everything under the sun. I have longed to have those talks with my own husband and felt guilty that my running partners know much more about my life than Dan does.

This past Sunday I knew Dan & I both wanted to get a long run in…but it would be nearly impossible to do in the normal you-run-then-I’ll-run way on a Sunday when the kids had to be at Sunday School at 8:45.

So I asked my mom to babysit so Dan & I could do our long run together in the morning. He’s training for the Cleveland Marathon and his schedule called for 9 miles.

I let him set the course…and he chose one that was almost exclusively uphill. I whined, I complained, I cussed him out a time or two. Being the happy-go-lucky, glass-is-half-full kind of guy he is…he kept saying…”this is the last hill..it’s all good after this…”

Well, I’ve lived in our area and run those streets long enough to know that Kuhl goes UPHILL to Route 8. And, that Hillborn goes UPHILL to Lake Pleasant.

And, remember, that’s he’s bigger, stronger and faster than me, so….we were running a pace much faster than I’d run by myself, but I wasn’t going to let him know that.

It was all good. I need the challenge. I need to be pushed. I need to do hills.There were times when I got MAD and was tearing up those hills thinking…well, I’ll show him!  (Yes..I can be a wee bit competitive).

In the end, we finished 9 miles — UPHILL all the way, I SWEAR! — in 1:20…which is about 15 minutes faster than I’d have done it alone.

And we did have some great conversations when I wasn’t cursing him or whining.

Painful and challenging as it was, I hope it’s something we can do more regularly.

Though, next time, I’m picking the damn course.

Today is Vol. 10 of “Marathon Mommas.” Come along as we follow two women — Theressa Miller and Christine Vassen — in their quest to run their their first marathon in the spring.  Each week, they’ll give us a glimpse into their training and mindset as they push themselves toward 26.2.

By Theressa Miller

We have begun a more intense part of our training program.  It is hard to imagine that in 116 day, we will be running a marathon. But, like everything else, it will only happen one step at a time.

This weekend we ran 12 miles.  It was great.  I am not saying that it always has been. Quite the opposite!  Miles 8 to 10 ate me alive.  Even in September, it was hard.

Yet, Saturday, with a weird start time and a crazy route, Mile 8 passed quietly.  And, by Mile 10, Christine actually told me I was going to fast for our pace.  (We both fear starting too fast and having to walk the marathon in.)  I finished with a pretty good half-mile sprint.

As we sat after the run, drinking water, eating a PB&J and rubbing our legs, we talked about next week’s long run. I was talking about a 14-miler and I was a little excited. But, then, Christine pointed out that this week was only (that word just makes me laugh), 6 miles.

What?  But I have been having these great runs.  The gym has been going great.  I don’t want to loose the momentum.  “Lets just do the 14,” I said. (You say crazy things after a good run.)

The answer was “no.” This week is a rest week. Rest the legs. Well…that is, if four lunch runs, two gym days and two 6-mile runs, count as “resting.”

So, we rest. Next week will get here soon enough.  Plus, the goal is to get to the start line and sprint across the finish. Steady progress.

This is a solid training program and we will be solid when we finish the marathons. Trust the training.

TO BE CONTINUED …

Clear streets and solid footing does wonders for a winter-weary runner’s soul, doesn’t it?

I bounded out of the house on Saturday morning, giddy at the prospect of running Yak-Trax free.

I had the best run I’ve had in weeks because when I my foot struck the ground, it stayed there (no slipping or sliding or sinking down into slushy snow).

It’s a good thing the snow machine gave us a break because my Yak Trax broke again last week. Once one of those rubber straps break, I toss the suckers because the wire coils will wiggle out as you run and….twice I’ve had the coil from one shoe get tangled in the lace of my other shoe and drop me fast. I went down hard (imagine running along & all of a sudden someone ties your shoes together) and in a split second.

Fed up with buying two pairs of Yak Trax each winter, I decided to try Get-A-Grips. A former Erie resident and running friend of mine swears by the things. I ordered them online on Friday and…they should be arriving soon.

I promise to give you a full report!

God knows I’ll have lots of opportunities to try my Get-A-Grips out still….the snow machine is set to crank up again later this week.