Yesterday was the IBM Uptown Classic 10K. I didn’t sleep well the night before. I had what our family refers to as “Disneylanditis”. You are too excited to sleep. I got up at 5:30am and was out the door by 6:15 to head to the race (that started at 8am).

As I got to the race WAY TOO EARLY, I decided to do some speed walking around the IBM campus. I walked 2 miles. As I was getting bored after that, I decided to follow a large training group that went for a “short run” before the race. They ran 2 miles. So…before the race started, I had gotten in an additional 4 miles. That was stupid of me.

I ran the race about 30 seconds per mile faster then I did last year. However, I know I would’ve done better if I hadn’t exercised before. That is another lesson learned.

I am scheduled to run 40 miles this week on the Hal Higdon Intermediate II schedule. Wow! That is a lot of miles! I am resting today and then start running again tomorrow. The big run this week? I run 16 miles on Sunday. Nothing like getting up two hours before the sun for a long run.

I can say that the plus side to all of this is that I feel better. My husband made me feel like a million bucks the other day when he said he can see me getting slimmer. That was the same day that I fit back into skinnier jeans. I am not stepping on a scale, but I feel like I am slimming down. Sure would be great to get into my skinny size 6 Abercrombie jeans (the ones I wore before I got pregnant all those years ago). Until then….I will just keep running.

Bring on the miles…

I went to pick up my IBM Uptown Classic 10K race packet this morning. I know most folks wouldn’t understand this, but there is something exciting about doing this. You walk in and you see stacks and stacks of race numbers. The volunteers are extremely nice and always wish you “Good Luck”. You get a goodie bag full of energy bars, coupons for chiropractors, and Post-It notes.

You always get a t-shirt from a race. It is secretly bad form to wear this shirt to the race. You shouldn’t wear your shirt until after you have run the event. This year’s shirt is a cheesy yellow with blue silhouettes of runners. Cheesy, but I can see myself wearing it for a night shirt.

The race is just over 6 miles. I am scheduled to run 10 on Sunday. I think I will run the race, pause my Nike+, and then resume it to run the other 4. This is an easy Sunday. Next Sunday I have a 16 miler scheduled. *gulp* Where is that Biofreeze when you need it?

Next Race: Run for the Water 10 Miler – Nov. 9, 2008

As our son is approaching the teen years, he needed to get his last booster shot today. He wasn’t looking forward to it. I can’t say I blame him. I hate physicals. The last physical I went to was totally deflating. Even though I was running like mad and trying to eat right, my doctor said I was “very overweight” and close to being obese. *sigh* Yeah, I was smaller then the doctor and could certainly run circles around her….still, it was depressing.

Our son was treated to all the tests: eye, ear, flexibility, aptitude, etc. He also got his first: “Turn your head and cough please”. I looked away during most of the exam to give him some privacy. I looked up when the doctor said that to see my son’s face. He had that “I wish I were somewhere else” look about him. Poor kid.

The doctor then asked my son to put his hands together and bend forward. She wanted to check his spine. She had him do this a few more times and said: “He has a slight case of Scoliosis. Did you know that?” This has been the same Pediatrician we have been going to since our son was born over 12 years ago. She has never said a word about his back before. The doctor left the room to shortly return with a gauge of some sort. She measured his back again and said: “He has about a 7% curve. When it gets to 8%, we need to be concerned. We should keep an eye on it. Maybe the next time you come in, we should get him an x-ray.”

I didn’t want to look concerned for my son’s case, but…I am concerned. My husband said that I shouldn’t be concerned about it. If the doctor was thinking it was really bad, she would’ve ordered x-rays right away.

I did come home and look up information about Scoliosis on the computer. There is quite a bit of information. Some sites say that a teen will grow out of it. Others say that it could get worse in the teen years. Who knows? It seems the cause for most Scoliosis is undetermined (idiopathic). It is sort of an “anyone’s guess”.

On top of this news from our doctor, I also got an ear exam. I have been thinking for the last year or so that my hearing was going. Granted, most of it is from a mumbling pre-teen. Some of it could be from my husband mumbling under his breath too. Whatever the reason, I seem to either not hear things or hear the wrong things when watching television, having a conversation, etc. The nurse was kind enough to give me a quick ear test. My left ear works just fine. My right ear works pretty well, but I barely heard the most faint beep. I foresee a hearing aid in my future…

Our family believes that physicals are important. You never know what you will learn about your body when you go. I am so not looking forward to my next physical. Why? *Shudder* Mammogram time. Nothing like being squished like a pancake with a bunch of strangers watching. Where is Mrs. Butterworth when you need her? She’s buxom and kind. I need her to hold my hand.

After having an action packed weekend in Dallas at the King Tut exhibit & State Fair, I didn’t get to bed until 11pm last night. I was pooped. However, I knew that I had to get up this morning and run 14 miles.

My brain woke me up at 5:59 (the alarm was set for 6). I got myself right out of bed and didn’t look back. It was a great run. I am getting faster. Woohoo! For most of the way, I was under 10min/mile. Although I recalibrated my Nike+, it still made me run an additional 200 yards. I’m not happy with that. Seems like when I pick up the pace, my Nike+ makes me run farther. Oh well. I am glad that I burned 1,800 calories first thing this morning. I feel great.

My plans for the rest of the day? A shower, maybe a movie with my family, and A NAP! I ran 34 miles this past week. Those miles just keep increasing. The most I will need to run in this marathon training season in a week? 50….Holy Toledo!

I have the IBM Uptown Classic 10K on Sunday. It should be fun. I am scheduled to run 10 miles that day. I think I will run the 10K, pause my Nike+, and run an additional 4.

Knock on wood, I am feeling strong this training season. I feel more focused. Maybe it is the goal of being fit before I am 40. Maybe it is just my mindset. Who knows? My hip is doing better and I feel strong. I can’t complain with that.

I guess I could be called a dedicated runner now. I got up at 5am to go run 13.1 miles. It was dark and the sky was full of stars. I had eaten a quick breakfast of Chocolate Chip Clif bar with a glass of Power Ade Zero as a chaser.

It was a great run. I borrowed my husband’s headlamp, which gave me a sense of security against on-coming traffic. The most eventful thing was around mile 10, I found a wallet laying on the side of the road. I paused my Nike+ to pick it up and noticed that it had credit cards, etc. in it. I put it in my Camelbak Hydrobak and ran the rest of the way home.

When I got home, we looked through the wallet and found a driver’s license also. It belonged to a 26 yr. old woman that goes to the University of Texas and is a golfer on the national golfing circuit. I called Citibank (where 3 of the credit cards were from). They said they would have the owner call me. She did call me about 10 hours later. The golfer didn’t call me, it was her mother. Apparently, someone had stolen her purse along with her wallet and her daughter’s. She was NOT a happy camper. She wanted to know exactly where I had found the wallet (I think she wanted to go back and look for her purse and other belongings). She is supposed to call me back tomorrow to get the wallet. I felt really bad for her. I know that I would be on fire if someone stole my purse/wallet. Poor thing.

One other thing I noticed when finishing up my half today, my Nike+ is really off. It made me run an additional 3 blocks again. I really need to get to the local middle school track and recalibrate it. When I get in better shape, I run faster and have a longer stride. That really messes with the Nike+ timing. I guess that is a good sign. It means that I am getting healthier.

Finally, I am starting to feel better in my hip. I went to the orthopedic surgeon earlier in the week. I got x-rays and a full exam. Come to find out that I have Trochanteric Bursitis in my left hip. As the doctor said: “You are a Caucasian woman. Your body isn’t built for running. Your joints aren’t built for running. You are open to injury if you continue to pound on your joints like you are. Unless you are a scrawny, Ethiopian man, you aren’t built for running.” When I told her that I didn’t want to quit running and that I wanted to run 10 marathons before I am 50, she said: “Well, get it out of your system. As soon as you complete your 10th marathon, I want you to switch to walking for the rest of your life. It is better on your joints.” I guess that is good advice.

So, after a few days of my hip killing me (Ouch! Cortisone injections hurt!), I am feeling much better. I also have physical therapy coming up to strengthen my hip tendons. Hopefully, that will make me pain-free until my 2009 races. I am crossing my fingers.

What a busy week for running. I am almost at 30 miles for the month of October and this is only 10/5. Not bad. I have 148 miles scheduled this month. I sure would like to make that.

I ran 85.2 miles in September burning just shy of 11,000 calories. That isn’t much compared to the 148 miles that my schedule has down for October. Holy Cow! That is a lot of miles. I ran something like 110 miles in Jan. ‘08.

I was on the Nike+ site today. I belong to a team that is called the 1,000 Miles in ‘08 team. I really had my heart set on making 1,000 miles this year. I probably will come around 700 or so. I could blame it on the Texas heat or my crazy schedule. I could also blame it on lack of motivation for a few months. I guess 700 miles isn’t too bad. As I looked at the team leaders board, I noticed that the top runner is approaching FIVE THOUSAND MILES (yup, 5000) so far this year. Say what? Does this person ever sleep? Wowwie! I think that person was an overachiever as a kid. Talk about overkill!

I have a doctor’s appointment on Friday for my hip. I first hurt my hip when I was about 12 yrs. old. I was running with my Dad and decided to sprint past him just before our house. My hip “popped” and hurt like the dickens. It would pop from time to time when I was would do floor exercises, gardening, etc. About two years ago, it popped badly on a 16 mile run. I noticed a softball sized bruise on my hip the next day and had to drop out of marathon training. The ache is back a bit so it is time to finally see a doctor about it. I am hoping to get some exercises that will strengthen my hip. Maybe even a cortisone shot too. My big fear is that the doctor will say “No running for you”. My goal is to run 10 marathons before I am 50 yrs. old. I have 9 more to run in 10+ yrs. That is doable.

Bring on the miles. I just bought another pair of New Balance sneakers. I am ready to go.