Exactly one year ago, we wandered into central park on a brisk Sunday afternoon and were met by cheering crowds and a sea of runners. The NYC 2010 marathon was in full effect and the momentum was contagious. Watching runners push through their last 2 miles for a victorious finish, we entertained the idea of running ourselves.
The pieces came together, a lottery spot, a cause to support, and a swipe of the credit card. For the first time ever we became morning runners. Starting July 4th weekend, 16 weeks before the anticipated event, we starting crossing off boxes on the Hal Higdon “Novice 2” training schedule. This entailed 3 short runs per week, one long run and a day of cross training. Our egos were a little puffed up and we thought of ourselves a little higher than “Novice 2” but realistically looking at our schedules decided it was all that we could commit to. We wanted to do our best and achieve a good time.
Our first long run in central park (9 miles) took a little wind out of our sails. This was going to be harder than anticipated. Training runs from my marathon 10 years ago were a little rosier in my memory. We advanced slowly but surely. I had a toenail turn black after our 12 mile run, a sure sign of a dedicated runner. We came up with plans for hydration and were fitted for new shoes at a local running store. Our calculated splits on our long runs was a little less than a 9 min mile. This was ok, but we both wished we were going faster. Couldn’t we do a little better?
The first sign that things might not go according to our plans occurred 8 weeks in. We headed to Utah/Colorado for a 10 day vacation. My ironman triathalon watch which was less than a year old died the night before our trip after running in a heavy rain. Wasn’t that watch supposed to withstand submersion, let alone a little sloshing? In the flurry of our leaving NY our running shoes were left behind. Buying new ones seemed out of the question as we had just forked out a small fortune for the ones at home. There would be no running. Rigorous hiking over the next two weeks would have to do.
Our cardiovascular status was no worse for the wear upon picking back up on our training although some muscles whined a bit. Everything seemed on track until a few days later when TJ’s knee started hurting. It was a tiny twinge a first but quickly escalated. Our first long run back we made it through 15 miles. The knee starting complaining by mile 9. We pressed on but the pain came sooner and sooner as the days passed. By the next weekend we did not make it past 5 miles.
If we ignored the knee it was not likely to get better on its own. After prayer and discussion we decided to alter the remaining of our training to optimize the possibility of actually running the marathon at all. The new plan involved a week and a half of rest, twice daily stretching and strengthening, short runs 5 days a week and no more long runs. Amazingly, the pain was gone our second day back running but other injuries were soon to follow. Lower back strain, neck spasm, incapacitating foot cramps and a rolled ankle. We took turns with our injuries, each one leading to a short halt in training. Needless to say we had no idea how things would go on race day.
Our plan for training was to condition our heart, lungs and muscles to be able to run the marathon and measure our abilities. Ultimately what happened was very different. We grew in discipline together but also in flexibility and communication. Morning prayers which were typically sleepy in bed became more vibrant along our runs. And through grace, with each injury and setback we felt less pressure to perform and more free to enjoy.
The pieces came together, a lottery spot, a cause to support, and a swipe of the credit card. For the first time ever we became morning runners. Starting July 4th weekend, 16 weeks before the anticipated event, we starting crossing off boxes on the Hal Higdon “Novice 2” training schedule. This entailed 3 short runs per week, one long run and a day of cross training. Our egos were a little puffed up and we thought of ourselves a little higher than “Novice 2” but realistically looking at our schedules decided it was all that we could commit to. We wanted to do our best and achieve a good time.
Our first long run in central park (9 miles) took a little wind out of our sails. This was going to be harder than anticipated. Training runs from my marathon 10 years ago were a little rosier in my memory. We advanced slowly but surely. I had a toenail turn black after our 12 mile run, a sure sign of a dedicated runner. We came up with plans for hydration and were fitted for new shoes at a local running store. Our calculated splits on our long runs was a little less than a 9 min mile. This was ok, but we both wished we were going faster. Couldn’t we do a little better?
The first sign that things might not go according to our plans occurred 8 weeks in. We headed to Utah/Colorado for a 10 day vacation. My ironman triathalon watch which was less than a year old died the night before our trip after running in a heavy rain. Wasn’t that watch supposed to withstand submersion, let alone a little sloshing? In the flurry of our leaving NY our running shoes were left behind. Buying new ones seemed out of the question as we had just forked out a small fortune for the ones at home. There would be no running. Rigorous hiking over the next two weeks would have to do.
Our cardiovascular status was no worse for the wear upon picking back up on our training although some muscles whined a bit. Everything seemed on track until a few days later when TJ’s knee started hurting. It was a tiny twinge a first but quickly escalated. Our first long run back we made it through 15 miles. The knee starting complaining by mile 9. We pressed on but the pain came sooner and sooner as the days passed. By the next weekend we did not make it past 5 miles.
If we ignored the knee it was not likely to get better on its own. After prayer and discussion we decided to alter the remaining of our training to optimize the possibility of actually running the marathon at all. The new plan involved a week and a half of rest, twice daily stretching and strengthening, short runs 5 days a week and no more long runs. Amazingly, the pain was gone our second day back running but other injuries were soon to follow. Lower back strain, neck spasm, incapacitating foot cramps and a rolled ankle. We took turns with our injuries, each one leading to a short halt in training. Needless to say we had no idea how things would go on race day.
Our plan for training was to condition our heart, lungs and muscles to be able to run the marathon and measure our abilities. Ultimately what happened was very different. We grew in discipline together but also in flexibility and communication. Morning prayers which were typically sleepy in bed became more vibrant along our runs. And through grace, with each injury and setback we felt less pressure to perform and more free to enjoy.
Love this post and the evidences of grace to you and through you, friend!!
ReplyDeleteBoog loves this. Two beautiful people on an awesome quest to serve people, honor God, and do something most of us would never dream of.
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