Tomorrow will be my last long run in pre-training, and then I’ll start the Non-Runner’s Marathon Trainer 16-week program. I’ve been posting once a week, but now that I’m moving into high gear, more frequently feels right. I’ve read NRMT all the way through a number of times, but I’m going to go through methodically one chapter a week as I prepare for that week’s training. So I read the introduction this week & it led me to think about why I want to run a marathon.

I’ve never been athletic; last-picked all through school, etc. I don’t stand a chance of ever excelling at any physical activity. The beauty of the marathon is that just finishing is an achievement–and one that most anyone recognizes as such. I mean, it was an achievement for me to finish my first 5K, but in the grand scheme of things that’s not a big deal. But running a marathon is. Sure, it’s something just about anyone could do, but few people actually attempt it. Lots of fit people could hop out of bed and run 3.1 miles without any preparation, but not 26.2.

When I looked at the Forest City News article on Steamtown and saw the long list of names, I realized that each of those people had done something amazing. And that’s what started me running on a small scale, 4 1/2 years ago, even though at that time the marathon was not a realistic goal for me. So: an achievement. A physical achievement. A peak experience, which in my philosophy of life are to be sought out whenever possible.

And what really sold me on NRMT when I flipped through it at Barnes & Noble was the focus on the psychological benefits. All the regular people who took Whitsett & Dolgener’s class (NRMT is based on a 3-credit “marathon class” taught at University of Northern Iowa) said preparing for and running the marathon changed their lives. They talked about feeling, believing that they could do anything now. I want that!

Running a marathon is a peak experience available to anyone that will take you to what you thought were your personal limits and beyond. It is easily accessible, relatively inexpensive, and is the single most physically and mentally challenging activity (equal only to childbirth) I have ever experienced.
…
Granted, running a marathon is certainly not the only way to exercise control over your life. But it is one way. And it could be your way. We will lead you through it, and if you follow our instructions, you will finish. And it will change your life. That’s a promise.

And here’s what Hollie, author of my favorite running blog, said:

i want to turn 29 a few days after the race in october, having the pages of this story written, and feel like i made something of my 28th year– i got off my ass and did something so remarkable, difficult, and inspiring that i can carry it with me as long as i’m alive to remember it.

Change 29 to 40, and yeah, that’s it in a nutshell. And she did it, and it felt just as amazing as she hoped.

Miles for the week: 13 (3/2/3/5) PRE-TRAINING WEEK 3
5 miles LSD: 58:31, average heart rate 150
Weight: 119
Resting HR: 48?
Fitness test: 49

Perfect day: sunny, breezy, not too hot. I tried to keep my speed down by focusing on a 3/3 rhythm for the first 4 miles, aiming for heart rate under 150 (except up hills), then picked up the pace for the last mile. Thanks to Mark adding me to his collection of running blogs this week, I got hooked on Hollie’s enthralling marathon training blog, which I spent way too much time reading but led me to think about focusing on not overdoing it! She pushed herself too hard in the early stages of training and suffered through several injuries. My mileage is still very, very low (and will stay that way with the Non-Runner’s Marathon Trainer schedule), but I have to be careful of the desire to run faster on the long runs. I’ve also been reading that hills are equivalent to speedwork, in which case I’m forced to do speedwork on every single run. So taking the long run as easy as I can (“you should feel like you’re not working hard enough”) is important.

I’ve already started to think about how I plan to break down the marathon mentally, since the longest runs before it will be two eighteen milers. This will probably change as training really gets underway, but right now my plan is to think of the first 20 miles as “the last training run,” and the final 6.2 as “the marathon.” “The marathon is twenty miles of running and six miles of truth,” quotes Hollie. Yipes. And the amount of pain she ran with…I’ve had it really, really easy up until now.

The new running tights are working out OK. I’m also going to need non-cotton underwear, maybe a hat, & something to deal with sweat–tennis wristbands would work. Next week 14 miles, and then real training begins!

Flowering now: multiflora rose, which is *everywhere* and perfumes the air (it’s a noxious weed and I’m trying to get rid of it on our ten acres, but it does smell good); Virginia rose; wild sunflower; heal-all; yarrow; hop clover; mountain laurel in full bloom now. I saw some kind of ichneumenon wasp with an incredibly long ovipostor (at least as long as the rest of the body), a dragonfly, and lots of butterflies. There was a tiger swallowtail feeding from the mountain laurel (beautiful together), some tortoiseshells, and many butterflies I can’t find on a quick flip through my books: mostly black with a white stripe across the wings. [Turns out they were admirals; alive the white stripes line up to make a V, but the identification pictures I was looking at were of dead pinned butteflies, with wings spread out as they never are in life. 6/19/04] A couple of male goldfinches right near a stand of yellow hawkweed, so they looked like flying flowers themselves. No dogs or geese today, but earlier in the week there were about 7 or 8 geese couples with maybe 50 or 60 goslings, various ages but all quite large. Too many geese!

Miles for the week: 12 (2/3/2/5) PRE-TRAINING WEEK 2
5 miles LSD: 55:29, average heart rate 151
Weight: 119
didn’t do resting HR or fitness test

Wow–by far my fastest 5 miler, more than a minute less than last week. I flipped through ChiRunning at a bookstore, which reminded me of the idea that you should lean forward and let gravity move your legs instead of keeping your torso vertical. It makes me go faster no matter how short I keep my stride (my feet are overlapping!), so it’s slightly more effort than running as slowly as possible, but it’s clearly much more biomechanically efficient. Still feels a little unnatural but it’s getting easier. I’m thrilled to be seeing improvements, although I need to be prepared to get slower again as I start real training and my long runs get longer. I got new gear from National Running Center–lighter-weight tights, and non-cotton T-shirts. It definitely helps that they don’t get clammy and heavy, but they are loose-fitting enough that they ride up, which is very annoying.

New wildflowers this week: field hawkweed, devil’s paintbrush, pinapple weed, elder. Mountain laurels are budding. There was a great blue heron dropping down into the little pond off Canada Road where it hangs out sometimes. They are such spectacular birds–majestic and elegant whether flying or standing. First red eft of the season, then another one. A woodpecker–not sure what kind. A road-killed mole–I knew they were theoretically around here but I’ve never seen one.

On Friday there was a Canada gosling lying in the middle of Canada road that looked healthy but couldn’t walk. I drove back and it was still there, so I brought it home to warm up in hopes it was just chilled from being separated from its parents and siblings. But it didn’t get any better, so I dropped it off at Wildlife Rescue on my way to work. I heard later that it didn’t survive. :*( There are too many Canada geese anyway, but I couldn’t leave it there to be run over or attacked by dogs. Today there were 2 goose families by Stanley Lake that looked just the right ages to be the same ones I’ve normally seen at the pond. I guess they could have walked all the way, and maybe that’s when my lost gosling got left behind…

Today also I saw an aluminum stepladder with a FREE sign on Stanley Lake road. I’ve been thinking of getting one so I drove back for it. It’s a good run when you save $30+!

Miles for the week: 11 (2/2/2/5) PRE-TRAINING WEEK 1!
5 miles LSD: 56:41, average heart rate 148
Weight: 119
Resting HR: 44
Fitness test: 51

A wonderful long run! Perfect day: cool, dry, sunny, cloudless blue sky. I’ve been trying to focus a little bit on quick light steps (“running on eggshells”) and clearly that helped me run more efficiently. I even had to switch to a 3/3 rhythm for a stretch (3 steps on inhale, 3 on exhale) when 2/2 has always been the only comfortable rhythm. But I didn’t spend too much time working on that so I could also just relax and enjoy the run. The other thing I did differently was run the last mile or so at a medium pace; that’s based on Hal Higdon recommending a 3/1 split to help train for speed (although it’s supposed to be on a long enough run that the first three-fourths deplete the glycogen from your slow-twitch muscles, i.e. 60 to 90 minutes). You run at your normal LSD pace until the last quarter of the workout. Makes sense.

Higdon describes 3 paces: “jog”, 50-65% of maximum heart rate, “fairly light” effort (this is a pace that DOES NOT exist for me, at least not yet! I cannot run slowly enough to keep my heart rate down that much!); “easy”, 65-75% of MHR, “somewhat hard” effort (easy is hard? that’s like small being tall); “medium”, 75-80%, “hard” effort (medium is hard too). Why so confusing? He also defines the “easy” pace as being “conversational (not a jog)”. Huh? The slowest I can possibly run is barely conversational. Well, I’ll continue to adapt new ideas to my own training however it seems to work best for me.

The oldest goslings in the three pairs of Canada geese are almost 3/4 the size of their parents now–they’ve got adult proportions but look a little portlier, and still sort of fuzzy. Very cute! During the week the three families were in the meadow across the road from the pond, and only the adult heads were visible (like periscopes) in the tall grass. Daisies are just starting in the sunnier areas; also blackberry, red and white clovers, plantain, and grasses. I did spot a very few phloxes this week. Columbines are flowering in people’s gardens, but I’ve only ever seen one wild columbine around here, deep in the woods in the state game lands.

I’m amazed my resting heart rate is dropping so quickly. I haven’t even started real training yet! Cool that when I started 10 weeks ago, my “fitness test” was lower than my resting HR, and they crossed last week.

Miles for the week: 8 (2/1/5)
5 miles LSD: 1:01:21, average heart rate 158
Weight: 119
Resting heart rate: 47
Fitness test: 50

Horribly humid today, which slowed me down significantly. I even walked a little bit on one of the hills because my heart rate was so elevated, and it took a long time to drop. There was a cool breeze off Quaker Lake, and it rained a little near the end, which both helped. But it’s summer already (spring, my favorite season, is so short!), so I’d better get used to this. I need some better gear–cotton T-shirt feels clammy, my tights are too heavy, etc. This coming week I start adding a mile each week in preparation for “real training” (starts June 21st). I missed 2 miles this week due to early-morning work commitments…I’m going to do my best not to let that happen again.

I’ve been thinking about why I’m so slow. I know it’s primarily just genetic, but it still puzzles me. Yes, I’m short (5’2″), but my legs are a little long for my height. No, I’m not skinny, but I’m certainly not plump. I’m considered strong for my size. I’m sure my form could use some improvement, but there’s nothing glaringly wrong with it; arm and leg movements symmetrical, arms swinging where they should, shoulders relaxed, etc. I was reading that the difference between elite and normal runners is not how fast they move their legs but how strongly they push off the ground…so if my legs are normally strong, why don’t I run as fast as a typical woman my age? I have Daniels’ Running Formula, which I’ve only browsed so far, but he talks about the importance of turnover speed and says that elite runners take at least 180 steps a minute. I counted today and I’m right around there. Hmmm…. Not that it really matters, I’m just curious about it. I have a Hal Higdon book, Run Fast, which I’ve also only browsed. As the marathon approaches, I’ll probably start poring over these books.

Wildflowers blooming now: birdsfoot trefoil just starting, buttercups everywhere, speedwell started last week but I forgot to mention it (one of my favorite flowers), chickweed, mouse ear, cinquefoil, a shrub that’s either elderberry or viburnum, Herb Robert (love that name), honey locust just budding, hawthorns starting. Phlox is flowering everywhere in the county, but there doesn’t seem to be any on this 5-mile stretch, which is a little strange. I saw two robins squabbling from a distance, flying up at each other–couldn’t tell whether it was territorial disputes, or one was an overgrown baby trying to get its parent to feed it.

Miles for the week: 10 (2/1/2/5)
5 miles LSD: 59:38, average HR 151
Weight: 119
Resting heart rate: 49
Fitness test: 44

Five miles is almost starting to feel effortless (the hills are are still a challenge, but when I get home I don’t feel exhausted or anything). On the flat parts I barely notice or hear my breathing (around 140-145 HR)–that’s what long slow distance should be, I guess! My one miler is still “intervals,” but I really think I’m doing those wrong. If I want to do speedwork at all I should probably go to the high school track. That’s just such a pain!

Transitioning to summer already–the swallows are back. The Canada goslings (saw them Friday, not today) are at least 4 times as big as two weeks ago. Dandelions have gone to seed already. Wild strawberry, honeysuckle, Russian olive, lilacs, winter cress, apple trees, Canada mayflower, starflower, lots more in bloom. I saw a new-to-me wildflower: fringed polygala. This is turning into “Hilary’s marathon blog & nature diary,” I know, but that’s one of my incentives for running. I was looking through a book called The Path: A One-Mile Walk Through the Universe by Chet Raymo–about his walk to work every day for 37 years and what he’s noticed. That’s what I like to do: see the changes in the familiar.

Miles for the week: 10+ (2/2/1/5+)
No stats on the long run
Weight: 120
Resting heart rate: 48
Fitness test: 44

I did the resting heart rate & fitness test while I was asleep (woke up & put on HR monitor, then dozed), so those are the best possible numbers! Long run was yesterday, during the Diabetes Walk that I help organize. We made at least $12,500 this year, which is just amazing! The walk is two miles out and two miles back on a rails-to-trails type path, mostly flat, and I did it twice, running at least 5 miles and walking the rest. (Did it twice because traditionally I bring up the rear to make sure no-one is left stranded on the trail). A lovely day, a little chilly and overcast but eventually the sun came out. Good place for wildflowers, including trilliums–only place I’ve ever seen them.

It’s definitely much harder for me to pace myself when there are other people around, which is why I think I’d prefer to train entirely by myself. (A friend who also runs said he and his running buddy, who live in Montrose, would be up for entering the marathon if we all trained together–would I be willing to drive to Montrose for the long run?–and I said I’d think about it). I’m a classic introvert–basically friendly & sociable, I like most people, but I need to recharge my batteries with alone time because being with people drains me. And training is enough of a time committment by itself–I don’t want to add in driving time plus the inevitable socializing time afterwards. I’d enjoy it, but it would really kill the whole day. Give me “the loneliness of the long-distance runner”…

Miles for the week: 5 (1/4)
4 miles: 49:15, average HR 165
Weight: 119
didn’t do resting HR or fitness test

Mixed-up busy week, I gave blood Tuesday which was also Election Day so I had to leave early, and we went away for the weekend so I tried to do my long run Friday. Giving blood messes with my running for quite a while, although one theory is that like training at high altitude, donating blood can eventually make your red cells bounce to higher levels than they would otherwise. I notice a strong effect from donation for at least 3 or 4 days, but it seems to go away within a week. I did schedule myself to give again at the beginning of August, when my training will be well underway; but by marathon day maybe I’ll be benefitting from the red cell spike! Anyway, the four-mile run Friday morning (I didn’t have time for 5 miles) was very hard. I ran to the State Game Lands which start across the valley from where we live, all the way to a beautiful little trail maintained for hunters (so it’s not a nice loop, just a dead end). I was excited that it’s just a little more than 2 miles from our house to the end of the trail, so that’s a good 4-miler. 2 very very steep hills (our cross-country cyclist friend Talbot said that the road was harder to bike than the Continental Divide!) up and down, so good hill training. Saw the first Canadian goslings, just hatched; three flickers squabbling and chasing each other; flowering grass (sedge actually) with fuzzy yellow blooms; bluets (also known as “Quaker Ladies” or “Innocence”–very evocative names! they are the mystery patches of white I see on lawns while driving at this time of year, that almost look they they hover above the grass because their stems are so thin); violets.

I am finally registered for Steamtown! There are currently 13 people whose last names start with C registered. One of them is also from Friendsville, which is amazingly coincidental.

Miles for the week: 10 (2/1/2/5)
5 miles LSD: 58:19, average HR 149
Weight: 119
Restiing heart rate: 49
Fitness test: 42

Ran in the rain twice this week: 2 miles Friday (steady drizzle), 5 miles today (varied between nothing & moderately heavy rain). This is good because my one fear about weather on marathon day has been “what if it rains all day?” 5 or 6 years ago it rained for Steamtown and I remember reading how miserable people were. I haven’t gotten soaked to the skin or run with wet feet, or through a real downpour, but the moderate rain wasn’t bad at all, so I feel more sanguine about running no matter what on Oct 10th. (Chances of really heavy rain must be slight, after all).

What a good run today–felt almost effortless, second-best time ever, but also the lowest average HR ever. And yet I stopped at the peak of the first hill to greet the dogs who live there. I decided that I shouldn’t get so time-obsessed that I can’t stop for something like that. The joy of seeing a happy dog running toward me (especially the shepherd cross, whose tail looks like a propellor as he slowly gallops over) culminates in actually petting said dog, so I’m adopting “stop and greet the dogs” as my new running motto (“stop and smell the flowers” is already a principle I like, so this is a natural extension). Lots of new spring things to notice: much more green (more grass, the daylilies sprouts are much taller, the birch, weeping willow, honeysuckle, and lilacs have all greened up). the maples are in full bloom (some of the flowers are already dropping, but it’s not a red carpet yet like it will be next week probably), a few serviceberries starting to bloom white, sprouting horsetails (at 4-6 inches tall, they look like the taiga seen from a plane), and fiddlehead ferns. Maybe I’ll pick some for dinner tonight! What I thought were violet leaves a few weeks ago are now much larger and coarser–I think it’s a woodland plant that has small white flowers, but I can’t remember its name. Lovely spring rain smell, especially mixing with woodsmoke. Factors that made it an easy run, I think: lots of sleep last night, and also the night before; I didn’t run first thing, so I was more warmed up and also had had coffee (caffeine certainly helps!); I’ve been hauling manure all week which is building up my endurance; the rain prevented me from getting overheated.

Miles for the week: 9 (2/2/5)
5 miles LSD: 1:01:09, average HR 153
Weight: 121
Resting heart rate: 51
Fitness test: 42

A very stressful week, burning the candle at both ends & running on adrenaline fumes, so I didn’t get in my intervals. One of the neat things about running (or any focused physical training, presumably) is noticing the immediate impact of amount of sleep, quality of diet, stress level, etc. Normally I run in the mornings, but by Friday afternoon I had only run 2 miles, so I did a 2-miler in the evening and had my best time for that distance (20:01). I’ve heard afternoon/evening is the best time to run for avoiding injuries, because you are the most loosened up. The spring peepers were in full chorus (they are asleep in the morning, I guess), and it was cool to run by the swampy areas and hear them at maximum volume. It’s such a strange experience–they are so loud, the noise is everywhere, and yet there is nothing to see. There must be hundreds of them within a few square yards, but they are so small and well-camouflaged that they are effectively invisible. I wonder if the sound of chorus frogs is one of the origins of classic horror-movie music–the eerie, shrilling violins. When you know what they are, they sound like a triumphant “spring is here!,” but if you were lost in the swamp at night, with this incredibly loud shrill noise coming from everywhere and nowhere, it could feel ominous. It was my first time in shorts this year (more on that later!), and I could feel the river of cold air, about knee-high, pouring down the slopes towards the lowest spot in the valley. That area is swampy but has no peepers–I wonder if it’s too cold.

A perfect spring day for my 5 miles this morning–about 60, sunny but enough humidity that everything looked a little misty, perfectly still. The first mile was tough–I was hauling cartloads of manure for the garden yesterday and I think my legs got tired. It’s hard to balance wanting to go slow and keep my heart rate down with eagerness to see my LSD times improve. Heard mourning doves. The coltsfoot is in full flower now, not just a few but masses of sunny yellow. The catkins have suddenly appeared on the aspens (since they’re at least 3 inches long, it looks like magic–they must expand instantly when the bud opens); gardens are full of daffodils; the pussy willow buds are turning into green pincushions. Spring spring spring! But running in shorts is leading to a problem with chafing. Not a big deal over 5 miles, but could be a very big deal for the marathon. I have new shorts that I thought would be long enough to cover the problem area (thickest part of the thigh), but they ride up (I hate having to tug them down constantly). I’m going to look into tights–there must be some for warm weather as well as cold, I hope. That way I won’t have to worry about sunburn either.