14 mile run and a half marathon for Shannon

Mark:

When my two older boys were little, their uncle taught them a funny saying. He would ask them, "What do supermodels do?" Their response was, "Supermodels always walk into the wind...always." It was cute and funny from two toddlers. A couple of Saturday's ago, we ran the longest we had ever run. 14 miles is a long way to run all at once. On top of the long distance, it seemed like we ran into the wind the whole time. My problem is that I'm not a supermodel. I don't have the looks or the hair to be running into the wind.

I will admit that I felt incredible after finishing the 14 mile jog. It is hard to believe that I ran 14 miles without stopping. I am learning about what to eat the day before and what to eat and drink the morning of our long runs. I have also learned that a ten minute ice bath after a long run does wonders for my body. Shannon and I were talking the other day, and I realized we are less than two months from the marathon. I don't feel ready, but it doesn't matter if I feel ready or not. The marathon is December 5, and it is rapidly approaching. We are running 14 miles again this Saturday. I had to take some time off because the bursitis has come back in my knee, and I wanted to try to give it a rest one last time before we make our final push in training.

Shannon:

That 14 mile run was one of my best. I deal quite a bit with sciatica that effects my left leg more than anything. I made up my mind before I set out that Saturday that I would break the run up into three increments...5 miles, 5 miles, and 4 miles. At the end of each increment, I stopped and stretched my left leg to work out the tightness and pain that creeps into it during my long runs. It really paid off, because I was able to run with a pace of 11:24 without hurting too bad after. That 14 mile run was two Saturdays ago...we have had a LOT happen in our busy life of kids and ministry since then.

This last weekend we were scheduled in our training program to run a half marathon. My theory with that is, if you have to run the distance of a half marathon, you might as well get a medal! So, I was excited to be able to run the Middle Half in Murfreesboro, TN. Not only did I get a medal, but I was able to set a new PR (personal record) for myself. I ran at an 11:15 pace and finished the 13.1 miles in 2:26:16. I was ecstatic! I was able to run pretty much the whole way. I did not eat before running (MISTAKE!) and ran out of gas at mile 12. I walked a little, ran a little, then made a final push the last half mile or so. It's hard to imagine running twice that distance, so I try not to think about it so I don't get discouraged. Lucky for us, we still have training ahead of us that will help condition ourselves to run those 26.2 :)

About that ice bath Mark was talking about earlier...I'm a big baby when it comes to those. I don't stay in for 10 minutes. I'm good to stay in at least 7. Well, since we were on the road this last weekend, I did not take an ice bath...boy did I notice a difference in my recovery! I will not be passing up that ice bath again after my long runs from now on.

This next weekend we are running another 14 miles, then we will be adding two miles each week before we start tapering down in preparation of our big race day! Do you know what I just realized? This year for Thanksgiving, I won't have to be as conscience as I normally am about what I eat because I will have a long run to burn all those calories just a couple days later! Woohoo!!

I hope you are enjoying our blogging about our marathon journey. Please remember that we are running as Hero Runners to raise money for St. Jude, their research, and the services they provide to families whose children have been diagnosed with cancer. We are a LONG way from our goal and would appreciate any donations you feel led to give. You can give a tax deductible donation on our fundraising pages by clicking on the links below. Thank you for your help!

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

12 Miles...Check!

Mark:

After a week of gradually getting back in the swing of things, I got to run a long run on Saturday. 12 miles...Woohoo! Every time I run I have the same two goals...finish and run the entire time. I am proud to say that I accomplished both on Saturday. I ran 12 miles without stopping. On Friday, Shannon and I ran 5 miles for our short run. It is crazy to think that 5 miles is a short run. I ran great, and I was looking forward to Saturday. Now, 12 miles is a long way, but you already knew that I'm sure. I started off great, and I felt great. In fact, I was running about 30 seconds per mile faster than what my goal is for the marathon. Then I hit mile 8. I didn't feel bad, but I had to slow down because I knew I wouldn't be able to maintain my pace. Then came mile 11. Let's just say that it was much hotter at 7:40 than at 6:00 when we started. I started counting down the time to try to figure out how much time I had left to run. The last mile was completely brutal. I kept thinking 4 more songs...3 more...2 more...last song. I finished, but I was completely spent. When we were done, Chev (my friend who is running the marathon with us) looked at me and said the marathon will be everything we did plus running it all over again. CRAZY! Honestly, I can't imagine running 26.2 miles right now. The thought of it scares, overwhelms, intimidates, and discourages me. I struggled running 12. How in the world can I run 26.2? People keep encouraging me by saying that I will get there. Just keep at it. Your training will make sure you are prepared. I appreciate all the positive comments and encouragement, but it seems like an impossible task at this point. Thinking about it just makes me tired. Writing about it makes me tired too.

Please don't forget we are running with a cause. If you haven't given yet, we would really appreciate your support. We both still have a long way to go to reach our goal as we raise money for pediatric cancer. Just click one of the links above if you would like to help out.

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.

No Selfies, Please!

Mark:

Woohoo! We ran 8 miles today. We were supposed to run tomorrow, but we have some other commitments and ran the long run today. Honestly, I'm amazed that I ran 8 miles without stopping; except when I dropped my water bottle and had to stop, bend over, and pick it up at mile 6. That hurt a little bit. Next week, we get to run 10 miles for our long run. Double digits. That will definitely be a new hurdle to climb over.

As a pastor, I can't help but see spiritual metaphors with just about anything I do. I say that to mention an article I read yesterday. The article talked about how they were going to make rule changes to the Tour de France because last year people would stand in the road and take selfies. The photo would have the cyclists speeding towards them in the background. Sounds cool. But it wasn't cool when a biker collided with a spectator and both were injured. Then, the article described a marathon race in Hong Kong. Several runners, at different points in the race, decided to stop in the middle of the race to take a selfie with runners in the background. Again, that sounds cool at first glance, but several of the runners finished bruised and bloodied because they ran into the individuals who stopped to take the selfies. You are not thinking in a race that someone will just stop on a dime, whip out a phone, and start a photo session.

So, what's the point? It's true that we want our pics to have an amazing background. Kind of like our family photos at the beach this summer. We wanted the sunset with the ocean behind us. Here is the problem.  Often, we are so wrapped up in what's behind us that it prevents us from living today and moving forward. For some, this might be a mistake or something we wish we could do over. I know I have moments I regret, and wish I could have a second chance to get a "do over." Our past weighs us down and hinders us from moving forward. So, we just stop and don't go anywhere. Stuck in the past.

For others, we allow wonderful moments to keep us from moving forward. For example, how many people do you know, or maybe you are one of these people, that their greatest moments in life were from high school? Don't get me wrong. I have some wonderful memories from high school, but as I draw closer to 40, I realize that I have spent more time out of school than in school. So, we allow those great moments to keep us from creating new ones. Maybe we should turn the camera around and start looking at what's in front and not what is behind us? This reminds me of Philippians 3:13-14, "Brothers, I do not consider myself to have taken hold of it. But one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and reaching forward to what is ahead, I pursue as my goal the prize promised by God's heavenly call in Christ Jesus."

Shannon:

I think the next post, I will be typing first...I've got nothing compared to what my hubby just posted. Thanks Dear.

This week our long run came a day early. I am leaving this evening to take our oldest, Caleb, to a baseball showcase at Ole Miss for the weekend, so I needed to get my 8 miles in today. Mark decided to go with me...you know, him being my mighty protector and all. He wasn't too thrilled about me running 8 miles before daylight by myself...I married a good one for sure ;-) I am so thrilled to share that before we left the house at 5:25 this morning, he said to me, "I am so glad we are doing this. I am really enjoying running!" I'm excited/relieved for that statement for two reasons: First of all, if you remember, one of my goals in this marathon training was for Mark to come to enjoy running like I do. We don't have many activities outside of our kids' sports that we do together, so I'm glad to have an enjoyment of running that we can share. Second, I started feeling a bit guilty this week for having tricked talked him into running a marathon. Why? Well, Sunday we started a small group study by Andy Stanley called "iMarriage." This week one of the topics we talked about was different expectations we place on our spouse...I didn't want him training out of obligation to me. I wanted him to train and run for his own enjoyment. And maybe to hear him say that I was right, running is fun!

Broken Toe

Mark...

I'm sure Shannon will take some time to explain this, but she broke her toe last week...or badly bruised it. It seems like one of us is always struggling or getting hurt with something during our training. I pulled a muscle last Friday. I had one of those days when I felt really good, and I was running faster than what I had been running. I had to jump up over a curb because a car was coming, and I pulled a muscle down the center of my calf. Thankfully, some ice made it feel much better. At least my injuries are running related. She is just clumsy, but I will let her tell you about it...haha.

We were able to run 6.2 miles again this past Saturday. Shannon even ran with a broken toe. She is one tough cookie. I think I would have wimped out and taken a few days off. She is the type of woman who will do something you say she can't just to prove you wrong. I tell people all the time that she is more competitive than I am. Of course, they think I am just being funny because I am ultra competitive. It really is no joke. She is so competitive that when you tell her she can't do something, she will do it just because you said she couldn't.

Shannon...

Yes, I'm pretty sure I broke my toe after our short run on Friday...if it isn't broken, it's severely bruised. This is the problem with being clumsy AND having ginormous feet (I wear a size 10 shoe, but am only 5' 3"). I lost my balance in my bedroom and somehow the edge of the bedrail caught my little toe and didn't think it needed to hit the floor with the rest of my foot. OUCH! It hurt. It swelled up and bruised pretty quick. For those of you who love to see the nasty details, I took pictures for you.

Even with a possible broken toe, I still ran our 6.2 mile long run Saturday morning. (For the record, I am competitive, but not NEARLY competitive as my husband!) Many of you are probably thinking, "WHY? It's early in your training, take a week off, let the toe heal, you will be FINE!" As true as that may be, I wanted to run. My injured toe is on my right foot...I run on the inside of my right foot, so really, my toe didn't really hurt when running. I just had to be careful running up hills since I have a tendency to sprint up on my toes, and I had to be careful transitioning from road to curb. It did slow me down by a full minute per mile compared to last week's 6.2 mile run, but I got it in and am happy I did. No regrets.

For me, getting as many miles and long runs in as possible before our big race day is important, but the main reason I wanted to run is because I have very few runs where I get to run the entire distance with my good friend and training partner, Angela. Angela is running St. Jude with me, but she is only doing the half marathon. We will have to part ways at mile 12 on race day :-( . Angela trained with me for the half marathon I ran back in April. She and I have a similar pace and have grown as distance runners together. We were reminiscing about how far we have come in our ability to run while getting that long run in on Saturday. Back in February, at the beginning of our half marathon training, neither one of us had much stamina or endurance. We averaged a 13.5 minute mile, struggled to run any further than a mile before we had to walk or stop and stretch. We also could not carry on a conversation while running. When we got to the point where we could push through the pain and run a majority of our runs without stopping, we were perfectly content running side-by-side and listening to our music with no talking. This past Saturday, we ran pretty much all 6.2 miles, talked almost the whole way, and it was so enjoyable! I can't even tell you what we talked about, but for this momma who isn't around adults too often; it was just what I needed. I run better with her than without. She is definitely the iron that sharpens me :-) ...and not just when it comes to running. I am excited to know that as my long runs get longer than Angela's, my good friend Julie will get to join my for our long runs. I'm just hoping I can keep up with her. She has run a marathon before, so I know running with her will push me to a new level!

I promised you pics of my lovely toe...you're welcome ;-)

And here is a picture of me and my sweet friend Angela, after we finished the RussVegas Half Marathon in Russellville, AR. We finished at about an 11:30 pace. Definitely an improvement from the 13:30 pace we started our training with!

One more thing...I have to brag on us...it rained for a good part of our long run on Saturday. The thunder that started rumbling helped our last mile to be our fastest. Now we know that we can run in the rain and we won't melt ;-)