Posts Tagged ‘2010’

A year ago yesterday it all unraveled — I knew I was injured and I knew I probably shouldn’t be running. My second marathon, though, was something I felt like I had to do.

A year ago this past weekend was my second Richmond Marathon.

I think it’s taken me a year to figure out why. This gets into those weird conversations about the overused “everything happens for a reason” things, but despite a very solid 2010 with running, I know that I lost focus. My runs meant nothing — they just become training runs for the sake of training runs.

This past weekend, as I had a solid run on Saturday, I realized how focused I am these days. Even though I am undecided on what marathon I want to do next — there’s no if this time around — I am extremely focused on running just to run right now.

Running remains fun, and that’s all I’ve ever wanted it to be. I’ve had fun in my “come back” this year and I can’t wait to keep having fun as I close out the year.

Of course as I type this I’m at the peak of a horrible cold. I think it started at the end of last week and just got gradually worse over the weekend. This morning I couldn’t hardly sit up for more than 10 minutes without being dizzy. I’m better this afternoon and am taking every step I can to get back out later this week for another run.

When I’ve been sick before, running is the last thing I think of, but today it’s the first. It’s all about having fun, and sitting on the couch all day hasn’t been fun.

A year ago I was panicking as my second Richmond Marathon neared and I was battling an ITB injury. I had a strong year only to see things unravel in the final 2½ months of 2010.

After the marathon, I closed out the year at the lowest point since I started running in 2004. Sure I hit 1,000 miles, which was my huge goal for the year, but I had to do it in what felt like such an uncelebratory way. In December, I set a goal for 2011 to end it stronger than I begin it.

And now, all of a sudden, that time is here. I’ve thought about it since I wrote about it. I’ve been trying to figure out what I meant all year – sure it sounded good, but how I hit accomplish this goal is so open-ending.

In some ways, I’ve already accomplished it. In the second half of the year I have set a PR in the 5k twice, the 5 miler and the marathon. I’ve also already ran more miles in the second half of this year than I did in the first 6 months – 412.3 from January through June; 463 since July 1.

I’m finding myself in unchartered terrority with my running – two marathons ended with injury and an overall lack of interest in running. Now with a little more than two months left in the year, I remain excited about running after my third marathon.

It’s time to focus on finishing what I started this year … and last year. In these last two months I want to hit 1,000 miles in a meaningful way. I don’t want to force it just because I’m close to it. I want it to be fun.

I also want to close the year off strong race-wise with a course record at my “home” course – the Bedford Christmas Classic. I enjoyed watching my friends run strong in that race last year, but it hurt me to miss it.

I ease back on my mileage a bit and get rested up before I prepare for the next big training cycle with my fifth Shamrock Half Marathon in Virginia Beach in March. But that’s 2012. I have some things to take care of in the next 67 days.

Image: Salvatore Vuono / FreeDigitalPhotos.net

I’m nowhere close to saying “I’m back,” but for the first time since my ITB issues started three months ago I have some confidence with my running. I said the same thing in my “It’s a long tunnel” post a week ago, but after looking at my Daily Mile stats this weekend I realized how long of a journey this has been. It hasn’t felt all that long — I guess with my son’s birthday, Thanksgiving and Christmas all mixed in, I was pretty distracted for a while. Plus I was relatively content to take a running break after not having one for a while.

I have no idea where things are headed the second half of this winter and early spring. I don’t need to have plans or a come back race planned right now. I just want to keep doing what I’m doing and see how I feel week to week before I decide anything.

Above are my miles from my peak week in marathon training when my problems began to what I did this week. As you can see, I had three weeks of steady decline until the marathon — much more than I wanted — then a spike on marathon week and then some extremely low mileage as I kept doing a little bit to get to 1,000 miles for the year.

It’s very refreshing to see things starting to go back up in the past few weeks. This week I hit 13.1 miles — completely unintentional to hit the half marathon distance, but still cool nonetheless.

I ran 2.1 miles this morning in my brother-in-law’s neighborhood in North Carolina to kick of 2011. While not much, it’s a much better start to the year than last year.

While on the run I captured the above photo — maybe it’s a sign that I’ll be OK for the Shamrock Half. Maybe. I’m trying not to think about that much right now. My focus is getting this ITB injury taken care of and be able to get back to 4-5 miles comfortably in the next few weeks before making any decisions. Things felt good today. The biggest issue seems to be my legs not wanting to go. I feel refreshed, but I also have that starting over feeling. Maybe that’s a good thing.

I have one final shout-out to 2010. I closed out the year with a short 1.1-mile run on Dec. 30 to finish with 1,009.1 running miles for the year. Thanks to Daily Mile for making the mileage so easy to track.

I’ve already stated that I’m not doing a year in review — my highlights can be found in the 1,000-mile journey post. In fact I’m done talking about running in 2010 (I’m at 1,008 miles; I might shoot for 1,010 tonight), except for this one final thing.

Thanks to TweetStats, I have access to some useless information about how I’ve spend my year on Twitter. For those who don’t “get” Twitter, that’s fine. I’m not going to try and convince you to even get on it. However, I love it. I’ve connected with so many runners, had some great conversations, gotten free advice, launched #runchat and even had several healthy arguments debates. While my Twitter profile shows that I’ve been tweeting since March 2010, that is in fact not true. It’s taken a couple of accounts to get to where I am now, but I’ve been on Twitter since September 2008, which includes about 4 months worth of tweeting at my former job.

ANYWAY, what does TweetStats say about my year?

• I average 17 tweets a day. That’s a bit skewed as I somehow found time in October to tweet 735 times, far and away the highest month of the year.
• 781 of my nearly 5,000 tweets have been about #runchat.
• The next closest word is “run” at 418 tweets.
• At one point, I tweeted a lot about the “Biggest Loser” — #BL9 had 241 tweets; #BL10 had just 85.
• Despite #runchat having a regular 2nd/4th Sunday schedule, it’s actually the second fewest tweeted day of the week: 566 tweets. Saturday is the lowest tweeted day at 470 tweets.
• Tuesday is the highest day with 1,081 tweets. Combine “Biggest Loser” night with a night that my wife usually isn’t home and you get a bunch of tweets.
• I talk to @bklynrunner a lot. 264 @ replies to her. Michelle was my first guest blogger on here last year and one of the nicest people I’ve never officially met.
• I retweet #runchat co-moderator @iRunnerblog the most: 61 times.
• Awesome: 160 times tweeted.
• #beer: Just 1 tweet.

HAPPY NEW YEAR EVERYBODY!

As co-moderator of #runchat on Twitter, I have taken a step back from answering the questions and just let the conversations go. It’s a lot of fun to watch, and co-moderator Scott and I talk behind your backs as you answer the questions. I KID, I KID! The conversations have been great and it’s so awesome to see runners of all abilities sharing their experiences with each other. We have some exciting plans for future #runchat sessions … but I can’t quite give those details away just yet.

So in between #runchats — which are the second and fourth Sundays of the month at 8 p.m. ET — I thought I’d take some of the questions from the past few chats and answer them myself — in 140 characters or less, of course. And if you’re unfamiliar with #runchat, this is how it works: We ask questions, you answer them. It’s easier than tying your shoes and going out for a run.

Did you get what you wanted for Christmas? If so, what?
YES! Matt Fitzgerald’s “Run …” book and a gift card to my local running store, which I used to buy socks.

What are your big goals for 2011?
To get rid of my ITB issue, and then to finish the year stronger than I begin it. I’ll figure out later what that means.

What’s one piece of advice you’d give to a new runner in ’11?
Start slow. One mile, one day, one week at a time. Little things add up to big results.

Looking back on 2010, what was the biggest goal you set and conquered?
A PR in a half marathon. So many choices, but that’s what I’ve wanted for a while. 1,000 miles was nice, but it’s just a number.

Do you feel that race fees are too expensive? What is the most you will spend to enter a race?
For many community races, yes. I think the reputation and number of entries should drive the price.

When do you switch to pants and/or long sleeves? What is your layering strategy?
Under 40, I switch to pants. Thin layers work best – 2-3 (maybe 4) on top, depending on the temperature.

What’s the longest time you’ve taken off due to injury? Do you rest, run through or seek help?
Unfortunately that time is now, but I’m not keeping track of time. I’ve rested, ran through and sought help.

Men, what do you think when you see a runner in a skirt?
I could care less. People should run with whatever is comfortable for them.

–> Don’t forget, #runchat returns at 8 p.m. ET Sunday, Jan. 9. More details coming very soon.

–> I’m looking to continue Q&A sessions and guest posts in 2011. If you’re interested, let me know! Visit my Contact page and we’ll make it happen.

Do you ever say something that doesn’t make sense one minute only for it to make perfect sense another? One great thing about Twitter is that those free-flowing thoughts are kept somewhere forever and you can go back and look at comments in hindsight.

Last night in a Twitter conversation with @irun2befit (Steena, who did a Q&A with me recently), I said this: “My goal for ’11 is going to be to end it stronger than I begin it. While ’10 has been awesome, this is not a good ending.”

When I first said that, I didn’t know what I meant. It sounded good, and what goal doesn’t sound good? But since I typed that, I’ve thought a lot about next year and my goals and I’m starting to realize what it means.

For most of this year, I’ve stayed focused and have been more determined than ever with my goals. Part of that was keeping my eye on hitting 1,000 miles for the year. Had it not been for that goal, I might not have made it to the start line of the marathon, injury or not.

While miles are important to me, the end number doesn’t define me. How I get to those miles is what is important. I didn’t run 1,000 miles just to run 1,000 miles — I think there’s some misunderstanding from some people out there about that. But I documented that well enough the other day and throughout the year.

So, here’s the deal. I’m going to start 2011 in a better place than I did 2010. Sort of. I’m going to weigh a decent amount less no matter what happens these last 10 days. I’m going to enter the year with an awesome base of 1,000 miles ran in the previous 12 months. The problem, though, is that I can’t exactly hit the ground running in 2011.

Running is a big unknown for right now. So what I want to do in 2011 is be able to be at this point next year feeling stronger and more confident about running than I do right now. I think most runners want each year to be better than the previous, so even if I’m not on top of my game in January, there’s no reason I can’t be next November and December.

It’s a really big picture way of thinking. I know that I can’t rush back to running, and I know that there’s a good possibility that I have to skip my usual winter training. I’m not giving up hope, but I know the reality of what I’m going through. I’m OK with that too. I also know that I could be running just fine in a few weeks and that the first three months of the year would just be a huge springboard for the rest of the year.

But the BIG goal is to not be sitting here a year from now not being able to run. In our “right now” society, it’s hard to wrap my head around that goal, but sometimes we have to slow down and think about the rest of our lives.

Make sense? Maybe not. But it does to me, and that’s all that matters.

Image: Idea go / FreeDigitalPhotos.net

As with many of my miles this year, Duke was with me for mile 1,000.

I’ve said many, many times this year how great of a year this has been for me with running. Then November came along and it all seemingly came crashing down. But I’m not going to let an injury define my year or set the stage for 2011.

There have been so many great things happen this year that my attitude about running is changed forever. 2010 has been the highest of highs and it’s time to reflect on running quadruple digits for the first time in the seven full years I’ve been running. Oh, yeah, I almost forgot. I (quietly) hit 1,000 running miles in 2010 Saturday. So here it is, the highlights of my 1,000 miles of running this year …

The year started off with a lot of snow -- the most snow this area has seen in more than a decade.

0-2.4
Funny thing about the year with the most running miles ever … I didn’t run my first miles until Jan. 4 because I started the year off with a horrible cold and horrible weather conditions.

42.5-54.5
It’s very rare to have a non-race run to be so life-altering, but these miles covered a run/power hike on Terrapin Mountain that I didn’t think I could do. A big group of us battled wind, cold and icy conditions at the top to do this. This run set the tone for the year, putting in my head that I could do anything I set my mind to. Not that it wasn’t there before, but it became reality.

226.6-239.7
Simply put: a PR in the Shamrock Half Marathon. A goal met that was a long time coming.

This was me at the 100th mile in April. Looking back, this photo was somewhat of a wake-up call to drop a few pounds. Besides my beard, I can see the difference in my mile 1,000 photo and this one.

257.8-359
Talk about doing anything I set my mind to, the April streak is the highlight of my year. While I had PRs and climbed mountains, running at least a mile a day for 30 straight days was one of the most self-satisfying things I’ve ever done in my seven years of running. Speaking of PRs and climbing mountains, during my streak I set a PR in a 5k by one second (miles 310.2-313.3) and ran a half marathon that climbed Roanoke Mountain (miles 325.1-336.2). I also ran just before and after midnight for two of those days during Relay for Life. Looking back, April 2010 was the single best running month ever. Expect another streak in 2011.

435.8-437.5
Not all these miles have to be good — this was my DNF in a trail half marathon in June. While I was sick for much of that week, I learned that it’s OK to not finish if the body doesn’t allow it. My DNF was so much better than a DNS. I gave it a shot; that’s all I could do that day.

514-515
One measly mile, but it was oh-so fast. The 6:15 in the Academy Mile was surprising, and to this day I think I could have done better.

647-660.1
It’s strange how many humbling runs I’ve had this year, and the Lynchburg Half Marathon in August is no exception. It was a wake-up call that I needed to step-up my training a bit. A GIANT hill in the middle killed any thoughts of having a good race and it made me realize that I had to stop taking hills for granted. But I finished with my son in my hands, and that was what made this so special.

I took several photos during marathon training this year -- this was at mile 800 for the year.

810.6-820.6
Not a PR, but I survived some late race heat to put in a good performance at the Virginia 10 Miler, a pretty much unplanned race. Looking back, I know I could have set a PR had I not had an 18-miler the week before. Maybe, just maybe, this becomes a big focus for 2011.

835.6-855.6
The first 20-miler of my Richmond Marathon training session was also a bit humbling. Looking back, I still don’t know what to say about it. Each long run this summer was special with hitting distances I haven’t hit in 3 years. It makes it even more special now knowing that I’m not going to do it again anytime soon.

901.6-921.6
The second 20-miler, which set the stage for the injury I have now. I clearly remember the last big hill in that run and my knee starting to ache a bit. Had I stopped that run at around 18 miles instead of pushing it, who knows what could have happened the rest of the year. But I can’t play the “what if” game. It’s another lesson in listening to my body that I so easily forget.

966.6-992.8
I’ve well documented the Richmond Marathon and how that went and how things have gone since then, but looking back a month later, I wouldn’t have done anything differently. If I lived and ran in hindsight, I would be doing myself a disservice. It’s done and I’ve moved on. So many of you out there who have injuries and regrets with running need to do the same thing.

999.2-1,000
It’s not even a whole mile, but this Saturday I hit 1,000 running miles for the year. Since the marathon, I’ve ran a few tenths here and there, only logging a mile or more just a couple of times. It certainly didn’t happen like I thought it would or when it would or any of that once I knew it would happen, but now that I’ve hit the mark I don’t care. I did it. 1,000 miles. Quadruple digits.

To mark the occasion, I took my dog, Duke, to the nearby middle school to run the final bit on a field where I ran my very first “official” mile when I was in 4th or 5th grade. Fittingly, it was cloudy, cold and windy, like so many of my runs in the first couple of months in the year.

I ran the final few tenths of a mile on a flat field at the Bedford Middle School, site of my first ever timed mile 20+ years ago.

So there you have it. You won’t see a 2010 recap or top 10 list from me in the next couple of weeks because this is it. This IS my year of running. I may run another mile here or there, but these are the best and worst of what the year had to offer. A year ago at this time I was ready for 2010 to be “my” year — a redefining sort of year. And to reflect on this year, I must say that it was my year.

So two blogs today (see Kerri’s entry here and Steve’s here) have me thinking a lot about my weight and how I REALLY want to end 2010. In these past 11 months I’ve been more determined than ever when it comes to running and I want to end this year strong – I don’t want to sit around on the couch and wait for Jan. 1, 2011, to get here to start over. I think I pointed that out well enough in my post yesterday.

In a year in which I seem so focused on numbers – my April streak, triple digits in several months, running 1,000 miles – there is a number I haven’t seen on the scale in a few years: 179.9. That’s 3.1 pounds to lose in 31 days. If I can do this in what I think is the hardest month to lose weight, then I know I’m setting myself up for an even better 2011.

A number doesn’t define me, but the determination to reach this goal does. I made it through the marathon when I thought all was lost … I can make it to the 170s.

I’m not even sure what this title means … I need to type it out. Rarely do a write a title before writing a blog post, but that the line that’s stuck in my head. I have been thinking for a week now about a lot of running-related things, even though I can’t run much. I ran a mile on my recent 5-day trip to my in-laws’ house in Ohio, but that was it. It wasn’t even a good mile.

Through all the ups and downs that running has brought me over the past seven years, there’s no doubt that this year has been the second best running year of my life. The best will always be 2004, the year that it started. Had it not been for that year, I wouldn’t be doing this today.

Despite such an awesome 2010, it’s ending on what many people would think is a sour note. Oddly though, I was only mad and sad about my knee problems for a couple of days. Now I just have to take it for what it is – an opportunity. It is an opportunity to get back to the basic things of working out that I should have been doing all along. Lifting weights, push-ups, sit-ups, walking. Just not much running.

I have been paranoid in the past few weeks that not running very much will mess up what I have done on the scale this year. This morning I was exactly 183, which is actually about a half-pound from what I was marathon week. I couldn’t have been more pleased. While Thanksgiving wasn’t the best of eating holidays, I did something unimaginable, and I’m not sure if anyone at the table even noticed: I had only one helping of food for dinner. I’ve been trying to eat slower and chew my food more, and so far it’s working. It’s back to basics. It’s what worked years ago and with taking most of my running away for a little while, it’s what I have to do. My goal for December is to maintain – if I stay at 14 pounds lost for the year, I’ll be completely satisfied. If another pound goes away, then that’s an even bigger victory.

As far as running goes, I’m so close to 1,000 miles that I can taste it. Only 4.6 to go. The odd thing is, I’m not overly excited about it. Yes, it’s going to be nice to get there, but I’m not getting there at 100 percent. I’ll get there in half-mile or mile increments sometime in the next couple of weeks. A couple of months ago I was ready to party when I hit the mark, but now it’s very anticlimactic. It’s like a really good movie with the plot line falling completely apart in the last 5 minutes. The mileage just isn’t important to me right now; getting healthy is. All I want for Christmas (besides my annual Christmas wish-list post coming soon) is a knee that can go for more than a mile without hurting.

So … it’s back to basics. And when I can run normally again, it’ll be back to basics with that too.