Life A.M.

So life after the marathon.  Monday I was pretty much immobilized, but I blame much of that on the fact that we were so cold that we couldn't bring ourselves to do ice baths on Sunday.  I did one Monday after I returned home and there was a noticeable improvement almost immediately.  By Tuesday my legs were feeling strong enough to walk to and from work, and I decided to go for a run.  I had this great burst of energy and I was determined to take advantage of a perfect fall day.

So I set out and I was like eh I'll go run a mile or two and see how my legs feel.  I ended up running four miles.  Two days after a marathon.  When I told my mom about this she said "I'm tired thinking about this, Sarah."  Which, ok, fair.  But I took off running and it just felt so good.  It was how I wanted the marathon to feel, but due to the weather I couldn't really even focus on enjoying the run.  So I took full advantage of this happy feeling and just went as far as my legs could take me.  Wednesday morning, my knees weren't quite pleased with this decision.  Oh and the same day I signed up for a half-marathon that's taking place this coming Sunday.  As in exactly 14 days after our marathon.  So you know I've officially lost my mind.

So after the knee soreness, I decided to take a few days off and ice my knee for a few days in an effort to stem any injury potential.  And to ya know, rest up slightly for the half.  Sooo that's what I'm up to now.  I'm trying to crank out an 8 or 9 miler in advance of the half, and other than that I'm not really preparing, I'm just going to run.  And let's be honest, the weather cannot be *that* bad on Sunday.  There's nowhere to go but up with race day weather.

OK FINE - Let's talk 26.2

Sometimes I swear running gets me drunk bc I remember my runs the same way I remember blackout wasted nights. So here is my shady, disjointed memories of the 26.2 miles in Newport...


I remember been cold, being tired, thinking "just get me to 15, just get me to 21, just get me to 23, just get me to my warm car." I remember when Sarah's ipod died and I thought, that really sucks I should sing to her and then 3 miles later mine also stopped working. I remember running by the photographer at 13.1 (this is about the point that the wind and rain and ice were beginning to hurt) and saying "I'm so cold" and then running by my friend Jeff and screaming "I love you." I remember my two best friends from high school grabbing me at the finish throwing me in a tent and wrapping me up in the tinfoil blanket I got at the finish. I remember just saying that I need to find Sarah and that I need to hold her hand across the finish. All I wanted was to hold her hand across the finish. I remember dancing in the rain while we lined up, joking, laughing and having people around us laughing with us bc we were seriously that crazy. I remember the first few miles just loving it. Soaking (literally) it all in. I remember the people on the sidelines cheering and I remember the other runners giving reassuring smiles. In fact there was one woman who was so great Sarah turned to me and said "I want her to follow us" I immediately though follow our blog so I yelled "runtilimfun.blogspot.com" Later I realized that Sarah meant that she literally wanted this adorable little woman to follow us around saying "you're doing so good, keep going." as we ran.

But despite the fragmented memories there is one thing that really stuck out during the race. I had fun. All I wanted was to have fun. My first race I was such a nervous wreck I actually got sick, like miss 3 days of work and see the doctor sick. The photog saw my bat shit crazy side for the first time in our relationship and I just hated every minute of the day. All I kept saying after the races is how I prefer to run by myself and on my own terms - I hated racing. But the marathon was different and I think a lot of that had to do with Sarah. We were in it together, and we seriously just wanted to have fun. I woke up giggling and smiling (at 5:30am mind you) and danced before the race, the photog even "How I metted" Sarah to some attractive male half-marathoner (this is a How I Met Your Mother inspired phrase where you go up to someone say "havveeeee you met (insert friends name) and then walk away to let them flirt and hit on each other). Any time I started to get nervous I looked at Sarah and she made me giggle or smile. There was no nervous feeling, no pre-race get-me-the-f-out-of-here jitters. I kept thinking "this is it, this is what it's all about." And we actually joked - in a freaking nor'easter we joked about semen churches and hot dog stands at fancy mansions (long story short when we were driving the course I thought one of the ticket booths at the mansion was a hot dog stand and Sarah and the Photog made fun of me endlessly). So despite the fact that I was so cold, I was also happy to be out there doing what I love with someone I love (wow Sarah, I hope this doesn't creep you out). But seriously, I think one of the reasons running is so great for me is because I have someone so great to share it with. Yes, running is essentially my love-child with Sarah.

OK I'm a creep so I'm just gonna throw out some photos and let you all contemplate why you waste your time reading my posts that are just creepy in an uncomfortable kind of way. But for the record I just want to thank everyone for their support - it meant so much to me that I have so many amazing people in my life :)

Pre run dry and warm Dancing in the rain

EDIT from Sarsh:  I would like to clarify the "semen church" that Ange references in this post is actually this.  Still funny, but didn't want anyone to think we're worshipping at some sort of sperm bank moument.

Oh Jesus.

It seems as though there should be so much to say, here on the other side of the marathon.  Tips for people just starting out in their training, or words of wisdom for those tackling 26.2.  But somehow I'm at a loss...it all just seems as though it came and went, quickly down the path.   

We both finished.  That's what we set out to do.  And I posted about the weather.  Ugh theweather.  Here's my first piece of advice: do not go north for your first marathon.  Go south.  Go as far south as the globe will take you.  Do not run in a nor'easter.  You will be cold and wet and the course that seemed lovely against the coast of the Eastern seaboard will seem miserable when it's freezing rain and borderline hail and 25 mph wind gusts.

But anyways.  Here's a race recap.  

FRIDAY

I arrived in Boston around 7:00 p.m., and by the time my gate-checked bag (ahem thank you fellow Jet Blue passengers for taking all the overhead compartments) was retrieved, Ange had already been circling the parking lot 20 times.  Bless her heart.  I took a mental picture, got in the car, and we were on our way......to the grocery store, where we shopped for our "day before the day before the marathon" meal.  And we were set to feed a family of four, what with our rotisserie chicken, two (2) orders of garlic mashed potatoes (Dear Shaws, I'm in love with your mashed potatoes.  Love, Sarsh) , green beans (and more! including cranberries....found in your freezer section) and crescent rolls  along with some brownies.  So to say the least, we had a feast.  muahahha I rhymed.  

After a few episodes of "How I Met Your Mother" (which I'm convinced can be transferred into anyone's life), we passed out.

SATURDAY

For the first time EVER, Ange woke up before me.  Yea.  Let me repeat that.  Ange voluntarily woke up before me.  I didn't wake up until 11 a.m., and Ange had been hopping about beforehand.  We needed to be ready to leave her apartment and head down to Rhode Island by 2:00 p.m., including errands, so we had to move quickly.  

So we went to Dunkin Donuts, where I showed my love for all coffee and pumpkin products with my pants and my happy smiling face.  

Then we went to the Boston running store to get Ange some chomps, and we were ready to tackle showering and packing.  Before long, we were ready to meet the photographer and begin our road trip to Newport, RI.

We headed to the race expo, where we were greeted by 12 year old volunteers who looked at us like we had 6 heads when we inquired about pace groups (hahahha why would we think they would have them?) and then checked into our hotel (this was lovely for our purposes, but if you're creeped out by costumed characters like I am, watch out for Sleepy the Bear).  After a great carbo loading dinner and driving the marathon course, we came back to the hotel, enjoyed some tv and fell asleep.

SUNDAY

We were up and at 'em by 5:40 a.m., ready to tackle the day.  Ange, always thinking, had brought a toaster so we could enjoy our carbohydrates of choice (bagel for her, toast for me) before kicking things off.  We woke up to rain, but we knew that was the forecast, so we were as prepared as possible, and headed to the starting line about an hour before anything kicked off.

After waiting in a holding cell, aka Dunkin Donuts at the Newport bus station, for about an hour, we were ready to get the show on the road.

We set off and it was pouring.  Buckets of rain were falling from the sky.  This didn't let up throughout the entire marathon.  It was 26.2 miles of Noah's Ark.  The first few miles were great, I think we were so happy to just be running that we didn't notice anything else.  Around mile 7 we hit the part of the course where we were running along the coastline, and running directly into headwinds.  This is when things started to get not so great.  You could see all the runners literally bending at the waist to try and fight the wind.  Not fun.  Then around mile 8 my ipod shorted out due to the rain.  Around mile 10 Ange's ipod shorted out.  So were left with no music and fighting Mother Nature, before we even reached the halfway point.

At the halfway point, the course split into two sections, one part for the half marathon finishers, and the other part for the marathoners.  I'm not going to lie, the half marathon finish line looked pretty tempting, especially after running in horrible conditions for 2 1/2 hours.  But we pressed on, and continued with the marathon course. 

The rest of the course consisted of two turnarounds, which again, I'm sure are lovely in normal weather, but are absolutely miserable in what Sunday's weather consisted of.  We were again running along the coastline, and it felt like the temperature dropped 15 degrees by the time we got to mile 17.  I honestly don't remember much between this point and mile 22, I just know that I wanted to finish and be dry.  Around mile 20-21ish, Ange started to pull ahead of me, and I encouraged her to not wait for me - I knew I was lagging and that something wasn't right, and that I would just hold her back if I insisted on her staying with me.  At mile 22, my left knee completely locked out, and I made the decision to briskly walk the rest of the way.  I could have run more, but I knew I wasn't feeling great, and rather than risk an injury, I decided walking was less painful.  Again, I don't even remember much, I just remember being freezing cold, and being pissed that I had to walk, and just wanting it all to be over.  

At the very end, Ange's friend Jeff spotted me from a sand dune and walked with me for a bit.....God bless you Jeff, it was such an encouragement to see a familiar face at mile 25.9, and to keep me going even though all I wanted to do was curl in a ball on the side of the road.  Or flag down an oncoming vehicle and curl up in their backseat.  And Ange, who had finished ahead of me, came back around (After finishing!) and walked through the finish line hand-in-hand with me.  

By the time I crossed the finish line, I could have cared less what my time was (5:50) or what Ange's time was, or how many people had finished ahead of us.  We had finished a marathon in a nor'easter.  Not many people can say that.  Over 700 people had registered for the marathon, and around 450 finished.  I'm proud to say we were 2 of those people.  It certainly wasn't an ideal first marathon experience, but I'm so happy we did it, and let's be honest, we finished and that's what matters.  

As for my thoughts on running post-marathon and whether I'll do another one...well that's going to come tomorrow :)

Done

We finished.

This was the weather.

We're still regrouping.

Full race report tomorrow.

That Run Was Pretty God Damn Fun

I can't blog for too long, but I just need to share the story of my amazing run last night. Now all of you long time followers of RTIF remember why I started running - to be more fun. I tend to get really stressed in life, at my job, etc. It's not always pretty, but the run brings me back to reality and makes me happy. Now lately the run has also been a source of stress, it's been harder to fit in, it's colder, longer, makes me sore and is legit cutting up my body (I have full out battle scars). But yesterday changed everything.

I had THE WORST DAY. Bad work day, bad life day, too little time, too many bills, and every little thing was just pissing me off (as I said life does not always bring out my most attractive side). Then I went on a run. In the cold, in the dark, rushing out the door to fit it in. All of a sudden I was smiling like a crazy person, giggling, singing and just so happy. During the last 20 ft I actually put one hand out and squeezed my fist - literally miming holding Sarah's hand. Then I said "omg Sarah we are there - 26.2." I'd be lying (but slightly less embarrassed) if I said I didn't cry a little.

Then I got home had great dinner with the roommates and was just SOOOOOOOOOO happy. Happier than I've been in so long.

OMG I LOVE THAT RUN. AND 26.2 YOU WILL BE SO GOD DAMN FUN!

...I'm gonna regret this post, huh?

Love and Shout-Outs

We're coming down to the home stretch now, and I'm realizing just how huge this is.  I may have had a minor mental breakdown on Sunday when I decided to google search "tips for running the Newport, Rhode Island marathon."  NEVER do this before running a race.  EVER.  Even if it is the greatest course of all time, guaranteed someone has a terrible opinion of it and has written "well it was great until mile 14, where man-eating dinosaurs roam free and the course isn't marked so if you're not equipped with an internal compass and GPS system, sucks to be you.  good luck getting to 26!"  Yea. Worst idea ever.

Fortunately, co-blogger Ange called me as I was in the midst of this suicide mission and convinced me to close out the browser.  She reminded me that our main goal is to a) have fun and b) finish.  As long as we do A, B will be fine.  And then we read this today.  If you are a runner and aren't reading Chic Runner you need to.  Right now.  Then come back here.  This convinced us even more that this is all about having fun.  I'm pretty sure we'll be incorporating jazz hands into our marathon routine.

Another inspiration: Pam and Jim's wedding last Thursday.   We'll be taking mental pictures the whole time.  Everyone has been advising  us that there's only one first marathon, and there's nothing like your first time (that's what she said heyooo) and you should soak everything in while it's happening.  So that's what we're determined to do.  Oh and we'll be holding hands when we cross the finish line.  It just feels right.

Finally, the best part of this last week has been everyone wishing us well, whether it's via twitter, emails or phone calls.  It's a huge boost and also reminds me that it will be all the more embarrassing if I don't finish (this is how I operate...sick, yes).  Possibly the biggest shout-out that RTIF has ever received happened today.  The one, the only, Miss Techyness gave us a huge shout out over on her site today.  Alana has been keeping me in touch with technology since 2004, when she convinced me to join this weird new site called "Facebook."  Since then, she's continued to keep me ahead of the curve with Gmail [back when you needed an invite, she was your gal], skype, blogs, you name it, she's filled me in and calmly explained things in easy-to-understand terms.  Oh yea, and her blog is pretty amazing too.  As she explained on her site today, she's volunteered her services to help give RTIF a fresh coat of paint, so keep your eyes peeled for new features post-marathon!  Really, just a banner.  But that's pretty fancy for these two PR gals.  

To everyone who has read about our ridiculous encounters, our love for G2 and our services as tourist attractions, thank you.  This started as a way for us to get all of our running dribble out in one place so our friends and family members wouldn't have to suffer through it.  And now it's growing into a place that is getting linked to from legit websites...aka the Techyness.  

I probably won't post until after the marathon because I'll be mentally preparing for two flights in 3.5 days [flying terrifies me], but we'll see what Ange can come up with.  And check back Monday to make sure we're alive!  Kidding.  

But seriously, if nothing else, there will be a Duncan Sheik-style post.  [Get it? Mid-90s pop tune "Barely Breathing"?]  God I'm cracked out. 

Loving the Run

Today was another great six miles.  I was able to squeeze it in before work, which also afforded me the opportunity to break out my new Under Armour purchase.  Now Ange has been raving about her UA compression pants, so when I went on the hunt for cold weather running gear last weekend I figured I'd try some out.  Unfortunately my limbs are not as lanky as Ange's, so full length tights look terrible.  Also, I never feel as cold on my legs as I do on my arms....all of last winter I walked to the gym in capris...snow, ice, whatever Mother Nature could throw at me.  Whereas Ange has a core body temperature that I would estimate is 20 degrees cooler than mine.  No joke, she outlined what she's planning on wearing for the marathon to me the other day and I broke out in a sweat hearing about it.

So anyways, these  are what I purchased.  And ohmygod am I in love.  Seriously, I don't know that I'll ever feel so strongly about a boy the way I do about these running tights.  There aren't words to describe.  And I didn't wear underwear (tmi? sorry....I'm a little behind on laundry) and it didn't even matter...the tights are that great.  They could adapt.  Love. Love. Love.  

And I had a great "people of Pittsburgh" moment on my run too.  I was still in the early stages, just after the first mile was completed, and I was cruising along kinda fast.  A security guard standing outside of a building applauded me, stuck out his hand for a high-five and yelled out "keep it going, gorgeous!"   This man single-handedly made my day.  A standing ovation, a high-five and a compliment when I have no makeup on and my hair is in a sweaty bun?  God, these tights are magical.  

Running Less, Baking More

Ohhhh life with new running shoes and fewer miles to run.  It's glorious.  My joints have never been happier.  My waistline?  Different story.  I have somehow developed this addiction to homemade baked goods (I blame it on the colder weather and the thinking that turning on the oven will help warm up the house).  My roommate can testify, in the year and a half we've lived together, I have never baked.  Cooked, yes.  Baked, no.  In the last three weeks I have baked no fewer than five things, including blueberry pancakes (from scratch) and a triple chocolate layer cake (also from scratch).  This, combined with fewer miles, is resulting in slightly tighter clothing.  For now, we will refer to this as "carbing up".

But back to the running.  Sunday I did a GREAT 13 plus miles.  I haven't felt this good on a run in I don't know how long.  I hit the zone where I felt like I could do anything, and nothing ached or hurt or was cramping up.  I was in such a good mood I even started lip synching and semi-dancing while running (the thought being "if Ange gets down during the marathon, what will I do to cheer her up?"  The answer:  rap every word of the Blueprint 3 and do a run/dance complete with jazz hands).  In short, an all time high in my running career.

Monday I did a yoga class, which was the perfect complement to my aching legs.  I followed that up with a 6 mile run yesterday, which also felt great.  I even sprinted the last half mile, just for the hell of it, to see how fast my legs can go.  Let me clarify: I have never in my life felt the need to sprint.  For anything.  Not even in some kind of forced activity when seven other girls in catholic school uniforms were depending on me to chase down a loose wiffle puck in fourth period gym class (excuse me, physical education).  So to have not only the ability to sprint, but the desire to do so, was shocking.  

And that's kind of how I'm feeling as time winds down to the marathon.  I'm absolutely in awe of what I've accomplished in the last few months and what we're about to do.  I've gone from being completely terrified, to overconfident, to downtrodden and now back to plain old satisfaction.  I don't care what the time on the clock says, as long as we cross the finish line, this whole damn thing is a rousing success.

Excuse Me Miss

Today I did my first "taper" long run. 14 miles. Let's just say I was not happy to run. I was so tired and all I wanted to do after my 2.5 hr drive home from CT this morning was curl up on my couch and eat cereal and watch tv. But I pulled myself together and went for the run. It went fine. I was slow and tired, my legs burned afterwards and I had to take the signature Ange "chilly bath." Sarah takes ice baths but I'm a wimp so I just take slightly chilly baths. It helped a little, but I am seriously just ready for this marathon to be over so I can start running for me and not for the marathon. I love running, but some days I feel like I'm just going through the motions and I kinda resent the fact that I'm out there when I dont want to be. I guess that's the whole point though, to get out there even when you don't want to.

Anyway, I did have one really weird/awkward "run-in." I was running down Com near BU around the end of my run and a woman who was holding some odd plant and walking with her daughter stopped me and asked me if I was jewish. I've never had someone just come up to me off the street and ask me about my religious affiliation. I just said no and kept running, but afterwards I was like WTF, who does that? It made me think of the time my Spanish Senora sat me and Liz down and asked "catolica?" But Tata was pushing 90 and Spanish. This was just strange. I wonder what would have happened if I was in fact jewish. Would she have invited me to temple after running 13 miles? I feel like I did not look appropriate to attend any sort of celebration or Sabbath. hmm

OK well it's been real, but now it's time for my date with the Dash sisters.

Peace out!

Be Careful What You Blog For

Today, not 10 hours after my blog on safety in the city, I got robbed. Seriously, who does that? Thankfully, this was not a run attack (probs my biggest fear ever, because it would ruin the amazingness of my runs). Someone just smashed in my car window and stole my Garmin GPS. Then while I went upstairs to make calls the the police and insurance company, the parking metermaid gave me a ticket because I was in a street sweeping zone. Clearly, I wanted to move my car, woman, but I couldn't because it was covered in shards of glass. Some people just have no heart.

Anyway, the good part of my experience is that for the first time in weeks I had an 'OMG I'M SO EXCITED TO RUN AWAY MY FRUSTRATION TODAY' moment. It's nice to know that I can still fine joy in my runs and I did feel better after my short little 3 miler tonight. Yay.

So there you go - Runs make you fun, robbers make you lost, and parking metermaids are horrible, awful people.