On the Road Again

Mark:

After 2 weeks of rest, ice, and Advil, I have been able to run the past few days with very little pain or discomfort. I ran 2 miles last Thursday night just to try it out and see how I felt. Saturday I ran 4 miles. I didn't want to increase my mileage too much too fast because I am afraid of reinjuring my knee. My knee felt great the rest of Saturday and Sunday. Shannon and I ran 5 miles together this morning. I ran pain-free. You have no idea how relieved I am. I was really nervous I wouldn't be able to run the marathon due to the bursitis in my knee. It looks like that shouldn't be an issue anymore. Now I just have to begin building my endurance back up. I missed almost 2 weeks of training. That may not sound like much, but when you are preparing for 26.2 miles, that is too much to miss. Thankfully I missed the 2 weeks early in the training. I still have just over 2 months to get going again.

Please remember we are running to raise money for pediatric cancer. If you have not given, would you please consider donating by clicking on the links in the banner? We appreciate anything you can do.

Shannon:

I am so happy to have my main running partner back! I ran my 11 mile long run by myself this past Saturday...and even though there isn't a whole lot of conversation going on on those long runs, it's still nice to have someone with you and it gets kind of lonely when you're by yourself.

I have noticed over the past few weeks that my knees have been sore to the touch after my runs. This is usually a tell-tale sign that I need new running shoes. So this past Friday, Mark and I went to our favorite running store, Fleet Feet over in West Little Rock. Love that store! I learn something new every time I go in. I knew the exact shoe I wanted...color and everything...because I was hoping to have the exact same shoe I've been running in. Well, they had the model, but not the color. Mark rolled his eyes when he saw the disappointment on my face they didn't have my purple Saucony's. Instead they gave me these bright teal and hot pink shoes. Y'all...they would be cute if they were a size 6 or 7, but I have ginormous feet. The brighter my shoes are, the bigger my feet look. Plus, all my running tops are purple, so I was hoping to stay in that color scheme. Surely some of you can see my dilemma! I considered for a moment to order my exact pair from their website, but decided that comfort on my long run was better than waiting a week and running with sore knees longer than I needed to. Behold, my new, very bright, very big, but very comfortable running shoes...

The good news is the weather is slowly starting to change, so I will be moving from running tanks to t-shirts, which means I will be able to get some shirts that go a little better with my shoes ;-) A girl's gotta feel cute when she's running really far and more than likely looks terrible.

This morning we ran our "short" run of 5 miles. I laugh because when I trained for my half marathon back in April, our first "long" run was 5 miles and we were stoked that we ran that far. Now we're like, "Eh, that's just a warm-up!" I didn't intentionally go out this morning and decide to push myself. In fact, when my alarm went off at 5:00 and Mark's didn't, I was hoping he forgot so we could sleep in a little before getting the kids up for school. His alarm went off 15 minutes later...then again 9 minutes later...and again 9 minutes later (you can tell our friend Chev is out of town this week, because we didn't run yesterday either)...then he got up. Ugh! So I got up too. Reluctantly. I thought today would be a slower run since my heart wasn't really in it. Imagine my surprise when my first mile was 11:03. I ended up running a 10:36 pace...a full minute faster than my normal pace!

I'm looking forward to our 12 mile run on Saturday. I'm hoping my new, faster pace will continue :-)

Like Mark said above, we are running for a purpose. Every dollar we raise goes directly to St. Jude and the families that are effected by pediatric cancer. Below are our links if you would like to support our reason for embarking on this crazy venture :-)

http://fundraising.stjude.org/site/TR/Heroes/Heroes?px=3476880&pg=personal&fr_id=40881

http://fundraising.stjude.org/site/TR/Heroes/Heroes?px=3470299&pg=personal&fr_id=40881

Double Digit Day

Mark...

We ran 10 miles on Saturday. Our first double digit running day. I will start with the good news first. We ran 10 miles. Well, that's about it for the good news. Now for the bad news. It was absolutely horrible. We started running at 6:45 instead of 5:45 like we normally do. All of us wanted to sleep in a little bit since it was a Saturday. Big mistake. By the time we were done, it was so hot and humid. We were drenched, and Shannon had a major headache from where the sun was beating down on her head. Shannon and I also learned that we need to fuel our bodies better before long runs like this. I had very little energy, and my legs felt like lead the whole run. I wrote in my last post that my knee has been hurting. Well, let's just say that Saturday's run was very painful. After a long, painful run, we went to Fleet Feet in Little Rock. On Saturday, they had a physical therapist from Baptist Hospital who would look at sports related injuries. I didn't want to drive over there, but the pain was so bad that I knew I really needed to. She told me I have bursitis. Simply, this means the fluid sacs in my knee have become inflamed. Fortunately, she said I need to ice, rest, and take anti-inflammatories until the pain goes away. So, I am not running this week, and I am hopeful that I will be ready to start running again on Monday.

Shannon...

First double digit run is in the books...and has been for a few days. Let me start off by saying this...WORST LONG RUN EVER! The competitive side of me is glad we will have another ten mile run this Saturday. Maybe it will give me a chance to redeem myself. Y'all, it was bad.

Like Mark told you earlier, we started running about an hour later than we normally do. Why? you ask? Well, because we knew it would take us about two hours to run our ten miles, and after looking at our weather apps, it showed that the temp and humidity at 8:00 and 9:00 would be the same...so why not sleep in an hour? Weeelllll let me tell you, the weather apps LIED! It was hot and beyond humid way earlier than it was supposed to be. This was the run that we look back on and take TONS of notes on what NEVER to do again. I'm going to list them for you so if you are ever crazy like we are and want to run a half or full marathon, you can learn from our mistakes.

1. Don't trust weather apps.

2. If you decide to trust weather apps, don't change up your hydration method...yep. I did that. I drink about a gallon of water every day, so I would say that I am well hydrated most of the time. Then on runs I carry a small bottle of AdvoCare's Rehydrate (an electrolyte drink similar to Gatorade) to sip on every couple of miles. On this particular run I decided to try Gu for the first time and just carry water on me...mistakes. Both of them. I have never used Gu before. I have normally used AdvoCare's Rehydrate Gel...similar product as Gu, just WAY more effective from what I experienced on Saturday. Unfortunately, the Rehydrate Gel is out of stock at the moment. I am currently stalking my microsite so I can order it the moment it is back in stock.  So miles 1-4 were awesome. In my typical  pace range, getting faster after each mile. Then comes mile 5...I hit my wall. I slurped the Gu (gag!), drank my water...and nothing. I didn't feel a boost in my blood sugar or get a second wind like I have with the Rehydrate Gel. So I ran/walked mile 5 to mile 6 where we had a refill of water. I was so spent and out of energy, I had to dig deep to finish stronger than I ran for mile 5. It literally is mind over mile when you are pushing through after hitting a wall. I got into a pretty good pace and came up on mile ten, running through our neighborhood towards home and I saw two people walking their dog that I knew would want to stop and chat with me...so I did the ever so polite thing and picked up my running pace, smiled at them, and waved (as one was stopping and waving me down) and just kept going...breathing really loud to emphasize how hard I was working. LOL!

3. My first mistake of the morning began before I even left the house. I slept in a little late and didn't eat anything before my run. I know. Stupid. Never fear, because I will never do that again. When I finished my run, I had this horrendous headache that lasted all day. I Googled (because that's what I do when I want to know things) "post run headaches" just to see if it was a real thing...and it is. Apparently one can suffer a post run headache from one or all of the following: dehydration, low blood sugar, tightness in shoulders and neck. Check, check, and CHECK! I am pretty sure I suffered from all three that day. And lucky me, that headache lasted from Saturday until Monday afternoon.

4. The last thing I learned as a result of this horrible run, is how to change my running technique a little so I don't have such tightness in my neck and shoulders. Typically come mile 2, I am running and stretching my arms every which way to loosen up my shoulders. I ran across this article on breathing techniques and it addressed posture while running. So Wednesday, during my short run, I implemented what the article suggested. Not only did it help with my issue with tightness, I decreased my time as well. I will call that article a win and add it to my Pinterest board :)

I hope you all are having a great week and enjoy reading about our training. Pray for Mark, that his knee will heal quickly so he can get back to training. He really does miss it ;)

Making Progress :)

Mark:

Well, this week has not been as enjoyable as the previous weeks. Last Friday Shannon and I ran our long run of 8 miles. During that run, we ran about a quarter of a mile on an uneven, sloped sidewalk. As a result, the inside of my right knee has been stiff, sore to the touch, and it hurts to bend or move certain ways. I did okay when I ran Monday, but that is when it began to really hurt. I had to cater to my right knee, which caused my left achilles to start hurting. When we got up on Wednesday morning to run, I was unable to do it. The pain was too much. It probably sounds like I'm complaining, but I just want to run a week without injury. I don't care about being sore; that's part of it. It takes the fun out of running when you are always dealing with some type of injury. The good news is that with a brace I wore this morning; I ran 4 miles. I only had a little discomfort. The plan is to ice my legs today and get ready for my first double digit run tomorrow. We run 10 miles in the morning. Wow, that just sounds crazy.

Shannon:

This week has been a good running week for me :) I'm not as old as Mark, so my ailments aren't as bad ;) I have been dealing with a little shin splint pain, but I think I just need to start phasing in a new pair of running shoes. It is only taking me about two miles to really get warmed up and get my legs loose. This is a great accomplishment for me since it used to take me a good four miles.

This week we started running four miles as our "short" runs. This is amazing to me, because earlier this year when I was training for the Russellville Half Marathon my first "long" run was four miles. Now I'm like, "Four miles, that's nothing!" I love seeing my own progress. That's the great thing about running...you aren't competing against other people (at least not all the time), you are competing against yourself. You push yourself to be better than you were your last time running. Looking back on that first "long" run of four miles in February, I ran it in 53:09...that's an average pace of 13:17 per mile. This past Wednesday I pushed myself. I had a fabulous run. I finished my four  miles in 44:06...that is an 11:01 pace. THAT is what I call progress!!

I'm looking forward to our 10 mile long run tomorrow. It is one of the last long runs I will be able to compare to my last training. Hopefully I can maintain that 11:01 pace I had on Wednesday :)

We want to remind you that we are raising money for pediatric cancer at St. Jude Hospital. Please consider helping us reach our goal. If you are interested in helping either one of us, you can follow these links:

Mark:
http://fundraising.stjude.org/site/TR/Heroes/Heroes?px=3476880&pg=personal&fr_id=40881

Shannon:
http://fundraising.stjude.org/site/TR/Heroes/Heroes?px=3470299&pg=personal&fr_id=40881

Feel free to share these links with friends and family that may want to help those families impacted by pediatric cancer as well.