Welcome to the E-Life: May 2006

Wednesday, May 31, 2006

Pumped Up and Ready to Go!

We had our send-off party tonight for both Rock 'n' Roll and Anchorage events. The ginormous group listened carefully as our coaches and team mananger provided us with last minute details on what to expect on race weekend. Coach Al reiterated that the East Bay is a special group. He didn't know why each season the east bay brings out the greatest people, but I think the answer is obvious...it's the leadership of our great coaches and manager. My mentee can testify to that. She has a sister on the south bay team who has joined in on several east bay runs and says there is a notable difference in attitude and knowledge. Our team was by far better. The east bay truly does rock!

Back to send-off. I was surprised one of my other mentees who completed one of the earlier events joined in on the festivities tonight. She handed me an envelope. I definitely wasn't expecting this, but I just finished reading the card and it was a "thank you" message for all the support this season. Being a mentor has already been a rewarding experience alone, but to have someone express it is truly special. I'm happy I can make a difference in someone's life.

Remember how I said I was very complacent about the marathon? Well i'm not anymore. After tonight, i'm pretty pumped and ready to go! I got my singlet, my airline tickets, and stuff is being packed. I'm ready to do the damn thing and even if it means waking up at 2 am to do it! Yup...it turns out we are meeting at the hotel 4 am day of the marathon. Yeah no sleep for Phil Saturday night....but who cares...... bring on Marathon #2!!!

*gulp*...just checked the weather again. within a day the forecast for Sunday jumped 10 degrees hotter. not good.

Sunday, May 28, 2006

Ready to Rock!

Date: May 27, 2006
Location: Berkeley Marina
Weather: Sunny, but extremely Windy
Run Type: Coach's Run
Miles accomplished: 6 miles
Time: 1:07:52
Pace: 11:18

My final taper Coach's run was on Saturday morning. The schedule called for 6-8 miles and I opted to do just 6 miles. It was a beautiful clear morning at Berkeley and the view of the San Francisco skyline and Golden Gate Bridge was breathtaking. Unfortunately it was so windy, that I had to put on my makeshift sock arm warmers. I hung with fellow mentor, Michelle for the first 3 miles and then she wanted to do a little more and challenge the big hill at Bay Meadows. At that point, I said, "See Ya" and I turned around to complete my 6. I figured I would run the remaining 3 miles by myself, since it's almost a given at some point during the marathon, i'd be on my own anyways. Might as well get use to it right? Another thing I tried to get use to on Saturday morning, was getting to the run early and just waiting. Cuz, that's what it will be like Marathon day. Saturday's run went okay. The PF was kinda acting up, but I tightened up my laces and it went away. I'm not worried about it though for San Diego.

I've decided to take it easy this coming week. I may do an easy 1-2 mile run at some point during the week, but i've cancelled Tuesday night's buddy run and I won't be doing any more strength or cross-training. I must hydrate well, eat lots of protein the first half of the week and then carbo-load the remaining time until marathon day.

No butterflies yet. Right now, it just seems like June 4th is just another Coach's run.

Friday, May 26, 2006

8 Days Left!

Went to the pool Wednesday night with Rocky. It felt slightly easier than the week before, but boy was Rocky on fire. He kept going and going and going. He was in such great groove that it almost looked like he was possessed. How cool is that? Meanwhile I swam just hoping not to hit anyone. Apparently when I swim on my back....I can't go straight. I always hit the edge and scrape my arm or get tackled by the lane buoys or I stroll from one side of the lane to the next. I seriously don't know how i'm gonna escape this Tri for Fun alive.

Thursday track was cancelled, so I just ate and chilled. Only 8 days till San Diego, which means no more junk can get into my system. I've already started packing and am ready. To be honest, I haven't really thought much about San Diego. I'm puzzled by my complacentness. Right now, it just seems like another thing I need to check-off as if it's on a grocery list or something.

Since everyone loves pictures, I finally took the time to find pics from the Emerald Nuts run back in March. I had to photoshop a lot of it because the damn photo company didn't want us stealing it. Well...HA-HA! I did it anyways. Yeah i'm freaking lame. Blah. Have a fun filled Memorial Day weekend.

Me and O with the Golden Gate Bridge in the backdrop

Tuesday, May 23, 2006

Buddy (less) Run

Date: May 23, 2006
Location: Heather Farms (San Ramon)
Weather: Warm
Run Type: Buddy Run
Miles accomplished: 3.67 miles
Time: 38:46
Pace: 10:33

I knew it would happen eventually. Tonight it did. I arrived at the Buddy Run....6:30 pm, nobody showed up. Waited another good 5-7 minutes. I was stood up. I had a feeling I would be, considering the previous weeks only 4 people showed up. I debated about just going home, but I had already stuffed myself with a powerbar and needed to burn it off. So I headed out on the run solo. There I was with my Team in Training shirt and no "team" around me. Ah...the irony. Anyways...made it to the regular turnaround and I see my mentees, Bruce and Fran running towards me. They arrived late, but were committed to do the run. I continued running solo cuz I wanted negative splits. However, my left knee was strangely aching and that damn plantar fascitis came back on my right foot. I don't think I tied my shoe tight enough, cuz my foot had tons of wiggle room inside. I ended up taking it really easy towards the finish. With San Diego coming soon....I gotta learn to take it easy.

Sunday, May 21, 2006

Tapering

Date: May 20, 2006
Location: Heather Farms (Walnut Creek)
Weather: Overcast, Warm
Run Type: Mentor Run
Miles accomplished: 6 miles
Time: 1:03:54
Pace: 10:39

I had planned on doing 8 miles Saturday morning, but ended up running 6 as it made more sense not to overexert myself since I would be swimming afterwards. Alas, it was not meant to be as the swim center had an event...so swimming was out. The run went well. The main focus was to run smart and avoid injuries since I was now in taper mode. I ran with O and Patti, where we spent most of the run recapping all TV shows. It definitely made the run go by faster.

Officially less than 2 weeks to my 2nd marathon and i'm having the same feeling as I had back in January for my 1st marathon....I'm pretty damn anxious.

Thursday, May 18, 2006

Back to Track

Date: May 18, 2006
Location: Wells Middle School (Dublin)
Weather: Sunny and Warm
Run Type: Track Workout
Miles accomplished: 2 miles
Time: 19:04
Mile 1: 9:26
Mile 2: 9:38

Last week's track was cancelled in preparation of our big 20-miler run. While I was driving to track, I was thinking how many people would show up tonight. Track attendance has consistently dropped throughout the weeks, but I guess that's normal towards the end of the season. Shoot, even I didn't even bother showing up towards the end of my first season because I was just that damn tired. It then dawned on me that it could be just me and coach tonight. I thought to myself...what if I didn't even show up?....Coach would be all alone. It would suck if he drove all that way and not a single person showed up. Well, 6 including myself made it to track tonight.

Tonight's workout was to run 1 mile as hard as possible and then follow it up with an easy mile. Coach said we'd surprised how the "easy" mile is actually not that far away from the "hard" mile. Just looking at the time above, i'm shocked how fast my second mile was. I thought I was going a lot slower, because I wasn't even breathing as hard as my first mile. It certainly is a trip.

I've been amazed how I have been able to do the damn thing this week. To be honest, i've felt like crap during training the whole week. Did not feel right at the buddy run, the swim, and track I usually have off days, but to have it go the whole week is a little frightening.

Hopefully i'll get out of it soon.

Wednesday, May 17, 2006

Training for Tri: Completely Pooped

After work I went swimming laps with Rocky. Believe it or not...400 yards of swimming kicked my ass more than a 20-mile run. I don't know how you tri people do it with much longer distance, but even at 400 I was so tired. I guess like most endurance activities, I just need to find my pace. I went out too fast and exhausted myself quickly.

All I can say is i'm screwed! I'm so not prepared for the Tri for Fun. Yeah, i'm ready for the run part, but the hard part is actually trying to make it to the run portion of the race. I hope I don't fall apart before that. I figure, i'll take it leisurely since it's my first time. If I actually enjoy the experience and think I can do better, I guess I can always comeback for the July or August race.

Meanwhile I need to squeeze in as many swim and bike training as possible.

Tuesday, May 16, 2006

Where did all the buddies go?

Date: May 16, 2006
Location: Iron Horse Trail (San Ramon)
Weather: Sunny and Warm
Run Type: Buddy Run
Miles accomplished: 3.67 miles
Time: 39:44
Pace: 10:49

Again only 4 people showed up. This time the 4th person was someone different from last week. To my surprise, my mentee Debra showed up. She finished her event two weeks ago and I didn't think she'd show up again, but she did! It was great to see her continue with running. She plans to get her husband to join her for the Rock 'n' Roll San Jose Half Marathon. I feel like a proud papa, watching all my mentees accomplishing their goals. It's definitely a rewarding experience.

Anyways, back on the run. It was hot. I went out fast because I was keeping up with Richard. As a result, I felt like crap. Physically, I think I recovered from Saturday, but I was not going at my pace. I was breathing hard and by the turnaround, I had to slow down. The run back felt much better.

Less than 3 weeks till San Diego!!!

sneaky ppl...taking photos when i'm not looking!
(well at least it's my good side)

Saturday, May 13, 2006

20 miles done! All is left is the marathon!

Date: May 13, 2006
Location: Mill Valley Middle School
Weather: Sunny and Warm
Run Type: Coach's Run
Miles accomplished: 20 miles
Time: 3:59:00 (approximate time)
Pace: 11:59

So begins our tapering, but before I jump ahead of myself, let's recap my 20-mile training run.

I woke up at 4:30 am to make sure I ate before the run, mixed my cytomax, taped, and did all my routine run prep work. I hauled ass to make it to the CV BART station to pick up my mentees at 5:30am to head to Mill Valley. Yup, as in Marin County's Mill Valley. We've been training in the East Bay all season and why we had to leave the East Bay to do a 20 mile run was somewhat puzzling. I mapquested the trip to Mill Valley and it was going to take 50 minutes. We got there before 6:30 am for the first staggered start, where our East Bay team joined the SF/Marin Run Team for the morning run.

Things sure operate differently in the "415". The SF Run Coach had this hand drawn erasable marker map and began describing all the little ins and outs of the run. It was one of the most complicated maps ever. I couldn't understand it, so I proceeded to adjust my shoelaces. Since i'm not the fastest runner in the world, I figured I would just follow everyone else to get through the course. It turned out to be a poor drawing anyways because many did get lost. Coach Al led us with our shout outs, moment of silence, and cheers. The SF/Marin team were chit-chatting during the moment of silence and jumped during the "GO TEAM!, NO WIMPS!, EAST BAY ROCKS! TEAM BALANCE!"

We did a one mile warm-up run which I included to my overall 2o mile run. I hung with Patti for most of the run. I wish I could remember what happened at each mile markers, but there were multiple big hills during the run, most of them occuring in the first 7 miles. Since it was an out and back course, we would get those hills again near the end of the run. It didn't take long into the run to know why Mill Valley was chosen for the 20-mile run. It was simply beautiful. The scene was breathtaking. We ran along the waterside, ran up hills to see millon-dollar hillside views of the bay, ran to Tiburon and caught a view of the Golden Gate Bridge connection to San Francisco. I wish I had a camera.

The run went well overall. It was definitely hot under the sun, although if I had to guess it was probably about only 64 degrees outside (i'm pretty good at guessing the temps). Patti eventually took it up another gear by mile 14 and I was on my own from there. My legs began to tire around mile 15. The hills toward the end did do me in and I was off my pace. I was sluggish and thoughts about not finishing, kept creeping in my head. My body and brain were working together to spoil my run and kept feeding me negative thoughts. Then I was asking myself "What the hell am I doing? This sucks!" At that moment, I flashbacked to Arizona when I vowed to myself I don't want to do another marathon again. There is nothing fun about this. Half Marathons are fun, but 26.2 miles is just painful and insane.

Then I began to overtake the negative thoughts and kept shouting under my breath, "NO WIMPS!" I was going to finish it, but I had to be patient. Being anxious and trying to get through it as soon as possible would just make everything worse. My legs were still moving, so I was okay. I kept thinking to myself, this is not cancer, so I can do this. I just needed to keep my legs moving, even if it was slow. I kept telling myself that I will get there eventually. I was just focusing on getting from one mile to another. Focusing on the next mile marker helped in staying calm, rather than trying to think, I still had 5 miles to go. Things got worse at mile 18 because there was one more fat hill to get over. By the time I got to the top, my right calf tightened and it forced me to slow down even more. I did, but my legs were still moving, so that was a good sign.

I saw the finish line about 1/2 mile away and I found a little extra in my tank to get there quickly. Afterwards, my hamstrings and feet were so sore. I sprayed some Kool n' fit and it felt better. After resting for about 40 minutes, my legs felt fresh again.

Every run before the 20-miler was simple, so to speak. There was a mile distance and I finished it with no hesitation. For the first time this season, I had a truly mental run. I wanted to wimp out, but I knew I had to do it. The mental test was good though cuz now I know I can overcome it and it was a reminder that running a marathon is not an easy task. It's a mental game, which I almost forgot. Now I have a game plan and i'm ready for it!

Tuesday, May 09, 2006

Taking it Easy

Date: May 9, 2006
Location: Iron Horse Trail (San Ramon)
Weather: Sunny and Warm
Run Type: Buddy Run
Miles accomplished: 3.67 miles
Time: 41:02
Pace: 11:10

Well 4 people showed up for tonight's Buddy Run, 2 of which were Mentors, but it was understandable considering a big chunk of our team just completed the Avenue of the Giants Half Marathon on Sunday and many were probably recovering from the 14-16 miler on Saturday.

It turned out to be a pretty toasty run and we ended up cutting it to a 40 minute run. It's time to start running smart and conserve some for the 18-20 miler this Saturday.

Saturday, May 06, 2006

16 miles down! Getting closer.

Date: May 6, 2006
Location: Isherwood Staging Area (Fremont)
Weather: Overcast, Partly Sunny
Run Type: Coach's Run
Miles accomplished: 16 miles
Time: 3:06:20
Pace: 11:38

I woke up at 5:00 am, ate my routine grub and left the door for Fremont at 6:00 am. Got there around 6:20 am and Capitan and Coach were already there. I left with the early group and we began approximately around 6:45 am. I stayed with my mentee Patti for all 16 miles. Unfortunately by the time we started, the first and third water stops were not set up in time. Kind of a bummer, but I had my fuel belt, so I could refill on the way back. As you may or may not know, Isherwood is a pretty boring run. There is not much going on. It looks exactly the same from beginning to end and it looks like it will never end. The plans was to run 8 miles out (towards the Dumbarton Bridge) and 8 miles back. We were averaging 11 minute miles for the first 4 miles, which I was satisfied with. Our goal for negative splits did not happen and we were likely doing closer to 12 minute miles. Surprisingly my calves did not act up during any part of the run. It's been a problem in the past for my long runs. I just kept anticipating, but no tightness. As a result, I felt great up to mile 14, but then my legs got sluggish. Stopping at the last water stop with 2 miles to go made it very difficult to jump start again. The legs felt even more heavy. Many participants decided to do 17 or 18 miles because next week's run jumps to 18-20 miles. We wanted to play it safe and just did 16 miles to conserve for next week. No need to throw "all the eggs in the basket" today when we have more to do next week.

The legs felt really tired after 16 miles and were slightly on fire, but I sprayed some Kool 'n Fit and it felt a lot better. I was thinking I needed an ice bath, but right now the legs feels "normal" again.

Friday, May 05, 2006

It's only 26.2 miles!!

I'm just so late in the news department, but apparently Mr. Ultramarathon man himself, Dean Karnazes, will be running the San Diego Rock 'n' Roll Marathon with us, but not before he does a 60 mile warm-up run from his childhood home in San Clemente to the start line. That's a breeze for him after he just completed 350 miles non-stop.

Date: May 4, 2006
Location: Wells Middle School (Dublin)
Weather: Warm and Windy
Run Type: Track Workout
Miles accomplished: 3 miles
Time: 31:08
Pace: 10:22

Today's track workout consisted of running 3 miles at marathon pace. Either I was going a little too fast or the track laps are off because I think 11 minutes is where I should be. Regardless, i'm happy with a sub-11 minute mile. The question is whether I can sustain it for another 23.2 miles. I'm gonna try to follow Coach's advice and to just keep focusing on the moment. Just focus on that one mile. I think during my first marathon, I was looking too far ahead. I think my mind was shocked after completing 13.1 miles, that I would have to do it again. If I focus on one mile each time, I should be okay. Short little goals instead of the overall goal. I'll try to focus on that during the 14-16 miler this Saturday!

Good luck to the East Bay Run participants who are doing Avenue of the Giants Half Marathon on Sunday! and of course my friends on the East Bay Triathlon team who are doing Wildflower!!

GO TEAM!!
East Bay Rocks! NO WIMPS!

Wednesday, May 03, 2006

Lance Armstrong to run NYC Marathon 2006

This news is about 3 weeks old now, but I just found out that Lance Armstrong will be running his first marathon at this year's NYC Marathon. I know he's Lance Armstrong and all, but shouldn't he have gone through the lottery process like me?? After all I did finish one marathon, and what has he done?....ok, he's a seven-time Tour de France champion and a cancer survivor. It'll be cool to run the same race as Mr. Livestrong. In two months, i'll know for sure.

Tuesday, May 02, 2006

Oh My Ass, Oh My Foot!

Bike and Run Day!

Date: May 2, 2006
Location: Iron Horse Trail (Danville to Dublin)
Weather: Hot
Bike Type: Biking w/Brenda!
Miles accomplished: 17 miles?
Time: like an hour and a half?

My first "real" bike ride ever! Yeah, i've biked before, but strolling on the old huffy....um I don't think that counts. I'm not sure if I ever rode that more than 10 miles in one sitting. I met Brenda at the Iron Horse Trail in Danville (where we always have our first Coach's Run). Even with my new nifty bike shorts on and hella blue helmet, I was still missing all the cool stuff, like gloves, sunglasses, odometer-jiggy-ma-bob, and other computer gadgets. I was smart enough to at least bring a bottle of cytomax cuz I knew it was going to be a workout.

Let me be the first to say, that I don't know jack about riding a bike. If there is a form, I don't know it. I can shift gears like a mad man until I find something that feels right. Maybe I should buy a book like Brenda suggested. We headed out from Danville and slowly made it to San Ramon. Heading out felt great. Apparently we weren't going all that fast, but catching up to Brenda was a workout in itself. The trail is flat and the ride should have been super easy. My lower back was aching. It feels fine now, but I think my body is just not use to sitting in that position. On the ride back from Dublin, I was spent. My heart was not racing and I don't think I was even sweating. I think my body was just tired from crouching over and my ass sitting on the seat. My ass seriously hurts now and i'm sure it'll be even more painful tomorrow.

Despite all my whining to Brenda and when she laughed at my pathetic state during a much needed break, I had a good time and can't wait to get back on the trail. The breeze flowing through the body felt really free.

Date: May 2, 2006
Location: Iron Horse Trail (San Ramon)
Weather: Warm
Run Type: Buddy Run
Miles accomplished: close to 5 miles
Time: 57:20
Pace: ?

So back to Iron Horse Trail, where I had just biked earlier in the day! Not quite a duathalon since I had a fat break in between, but I now have an idea of what duatheletes and triatheletes go through. It's tough. I was spent halfway through the run tonight. It was warm and I felt exhausted. What made it worse was my top right foot was aching and it felt like Plantar Fascitis. Not that again. I haven't had this problem since I broke in the new shoes. I stopped and the numbness went away; however this time I could still feel some lasting soreness. Typically when I get the PF, it goes away after I stop and I feel "normal"again. This time it was still sore and it felt more like a bruise. Then it hit me. During the bike ride, I was probably not "spinning" the whole time, but I was probably pushing down on the pedal with my top foot. I probably need to get clip shoes.

I was still able to run, but I had to slow it down. I finished, but now my ass and my foot hurt. I guess that's good. As Ultramarathon's middle school coach said: "If it felt good, it probably mean't you didn't push hard enough. It's suppose to hurt like hell."

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