Champs Like Us, Baby We Were Born to Run

This has been a great running week.

It began when I returned from Colorado on Tuesday. I crammed in a run in the evening - just 3.5 miles. It wasn't the greatest, but it was OK, considering I had been traveling for the better part of the day and had survived on scant airport provisions.

On Wednesday, I decided to run after my board meeting at Emelyn's pre-school (8pm) but decided instead to go to Ben and Jerry's with some friends. It is no surprise that I was glad to eat ice cream instead of run!

Thursday was an odd day for me. Pollen.com has voted Eugene, OR as #1 in grass pollen and allergens in the air this week, so I have been battling sneezing fits and itchy eyes all week, but Thursday was even worse. As a result, I hadn't eaten all day. I'd just plain forgotten due to a busy schedule and no appetite. After work, Tia and I attempted to run, but I had zero energy and we ended up walking about as much as we ran (if not more).

Friday, I did some cross training. I figured it had been a while since I'd done anything other than run, so a half hour on the eliptical would do some good.

Saturday, I attended a baby shower and planned to run afterwards. As I was leaving the shower, a huge pain made its way into my stomach and gut. The kind of pain to indicate that I had eaten something that didn't agree with me. I drove home, lied down for 20 minutes and didn't really feel any better. I decided to run anyway, thinking it might actually make me feel better (I've come a long way) and if not, I'll know quickly and just walk/crawl home. I donned my Marine Corps Marathon t-shirt as a sort of "insurance policy" to keep me moving forward and headed out the door. Much to my surprise, I DID feel better as I ran and was able to keep going. I ran a quick 4 miles in the late afternoon heat and sun. Quickly showered and went to see Get Smart with a friend, enjoying a celebratory large soft pretzel with cheese sauce. A little guilty pleasure.

On Sunday, I charted a course for 8 miles. I woke up, made a smoothie, did some stretching and turned on Meet the Press while I prepared myself for the run. As I was reminded how much I miss Tim Russert, Brian Williams attempted to forge ahead with the program Tim had prepared before his untimely death. This wasn't exactly the frame of mind I needed to embody prior to a run that was probably going to take ninety minutes, so I promptly headed out the door with a heavy heart, my ipod, and some water. Oh - and my Marine Corps T shirt. I figured I could use all the help I could get, though it was still early in the day and only 55 degrees.

As I scrolled through the play-lists on my iPod, I selected the 90's music album, which was automatically sorted for me by those ingenious folks at Apple. Before I knew it, I was rocking and rolling down the street, The Boss streaming in my head. How fitting that my Springsteen favorites came up while I was still feeling blue over my beloved Tim Russert (who was his #1 fan). Glory Days, My Hometown, Born to Run (love that one!), Born in the USA - the list goes on. Something about the Boss this morning just put my feet on fire. I ran and ran and ran and felt great the whole time. Sure, I did have a moment when I thought: "Ugh! I've only been running for 25 minutes! I've still got an hour to go!", but I kept the goal in mind: completeing the marathon with 4 girlfriends who were training across the continent with me, whilst Bruce Springsteen's "Champs like us, Baby we were Born to Run" went through my head.

I also made a new discovery: I had not been pushing off enough with the ball of my foot when completing my running stride. I hit with the heel and rolled the foot, but stopped sort of bouncing up. Instead, I'd leave the job to my ankle, which COULD have been causing some of that leg pain. Trying not to pre-occupy myself with form too much and succumbing to distraction, I kept it in mind and eventually realized that I had been in fact putting too much stress on those ankles and tendons by shoving my foot up instead of springing from the ball of my foot.

As a result, I was able to really move. Plus, I didn't have any knee or leg pain and I had a lot more energy. It was great. Before I knew it, I was back home in 80 minutes. I had a couple of 45-60 second walking breaks to sip water and munch on a half of a clif bar, but otherwise, I had a pretty steady run. Felt fantastic. If I felt like slowing down at any point during the run, my T shirt reminded me of my mission and I just simply kept running. It was that simple. Plus, with pals like Bruce Springsteen, Tim McGraw, Martine McBride, and the Dixie Chicks, along with inspiration like Tim Russert, the Track and Field Olympic Trials (in just a few days here in EUGENE!), and my dear family, I just couldn't go wrong.

This week, I'm going to need to do some good planning. Greg and I will be in Sunriver, OR from Thursday through Sunday (he'll be competing in a Half-Iron Man! GO Greg, GO!). The altitude there is high - not as high as Denver, but nonetheless, the oxygen is much thinner. Therefore, I'll need to cram in runs of 4, 3, and 6 or 7 miles before leaving, and then do ten when I get home on Sunday evening. I'll focus on cycling while I'm in Sunriver as a good cross training tool and there are miles and miles of bike paths, so I'll have Emelyn in tow and we will enjoy visiting the many playgrounds and pools at the resort in two-wheel fashion.

I'm so excited to be able to run with Greg and Emelyn this week! I've missed them so much! Can't wait to pick them up from the airport tomorrow!