Bad Ass?...errrrr...OK!

I have been called lots of things for running this marathon - crazy, ridiculous and even stupid (thanks whoever called me that...). However, my favorite to date, believe it or not, is "bad ass". I was talking to a good friend the other day - she sent me an e-mail that was full of encouragement and at the very end she ended with, "you're bad ass...". I never thought the word (s)? "bad ass" would have a profound effect on me, but somehow it did (in a weird empowering sort of way...). I AM bad ass for embarking on this journey - one with many ups, downs, pains, smiles and tears. I have many moments where I feel very proud of what I'm doing, but also moments where I feel overwhelmed, tired and downright crazy. I knew going into this that it wouldn't be a piece of cake, that there would be days I just wanted to give up, call Monica at the TNT office and tell her this just wasn't working out and "thanks, but no thanks". I do feel like that, often actually - but I also find myself worrying about things that initially never even crossed my mind. What if I get hurt while training and don't even make it to the race? What if I don't make my fundraising goal? What if I can't get through the long team runs? What if I let everyone down? I also never knew what a roller coaster of emotions I'd feel. One second I can't lace up my shoes fast enough, and the next I have NO desire what-so-ever to get off the couch. I have come to expect it, but it's still not always easy to snap myself out of it when I'm in the moment.

This past week has been a good, but interesting one. Physically I have been all over the place. My goal for the week was to work on my cross-training - I have realized that strength training is a MUST in addition to my running. As the mileage is increasing, I have been noticing how weak my upper body really is. Last week I took a Body Pump class (high repetition strength training class that covers everything from biceps to glutes), and worked in a 30 minute circuit in addition to running...and boy did the extra activity tire me out!

I am pretty pleased with my workouts last week - some days I was on and others not so much, but I got it all done, that's all that matters...right?

Saturday 6/28 was our 8 mile run. The weather just wouldn't give me a break - when I left the house at 7 am it was MUGGY and CLOUDY. Awesome start to the day. I was NOT excited to be up that early. What I could have used was a sunny, low 70's kind of day (couldn't everyone?) - but apparently the weather man felt differently.

It was a rough start - the 1st 3 miles my legs felt like tree trunks, I was tired, uninterested and sweating buckets. Mind games were in full effect the entire 80 minutes I was running, again no break there. I trudged to the end, only stopping for quick water breaks and when I reached the end my hips felt like they might crack in half. Nothing else to report except that it's o-v-e-r.

Workouts Last Week:
Sunday: Off
Monday: 4 Miles/ 60 min. Body Pump
Tuesday: Off
Wednesday: 7 Miles
Thursday: 4.2 Miles
Friday: 2 Miles/ 30 Min. Circut
Saturday: 8 Miles

I am hoping for another productive week in terms of training, wish me luck!

I am up to $855 as of today, June 29th...YAY! Thank you all SO much! If you haven't (or have!) donated and would like to, please click on the link at the top right-hand corner of the blog. I can't express how much your support means!

Love D

PROGRESS!

Hey everyone! I will start off by saying I had another great week of training (as I sit here icing my knees with bags of frozen veg tables!). I am finally beginning to see my endurance improve! I can officially say I am OBSESSED with running AND all things running.

In the beginning of the week I was having a lot of knee pain (primarily in the knee cap) and was starting to freak out. It's too early for any injuries - so I went to the Dr. to check things out. I have since started taking Glucosamine Chondriton and Flax Seed Oil (thanks Rena!), both which help lubricate the joints. That, along with icing my knees and popping the occasional Ibuprofen has REALLY helped the discomfort. I was even able to increase my mileage this week without over doing it.

I feel like every week I have a running break through. This week I reached the milestone of getting through my 6 and 7 mile runs without feeling like I was gonna die. In fact, I learned I can actually carry a conversation well past mile 5 - trust me...that's huge! I also focused on a faster pace (another milestone which we will get to later!).

Over the course of the week I ventured into no man's land AKA Grafton, MA (which is beautiful). It is literally farm after farm - we even made a new best friend, a horse that we named Ginger (seriously, we come up with the most ridiculous things to keep us from getting bored, naming random horses is one of them!).

I just returned a few hours ago from our 7 mile team run. I didn't feel my best today, but I definitely exceeded my expectations. The morning didn't start off very well - I forgot my breakfast and resorted to a packet of GU (energy gel) because my stomach was going crazy before we even started the run. Thanks Coach Kevin, if it weren't for you I would have been toast this morning!

Kristina (another teammate) and I ran together today and boy did we kick some major (excuse me mom!) ass. We were flying! We ran to Westboro and through Tuft's Vet school where we saw some lamas, really big cows, roosters etc.

When we came to our last hill we decided to try out Coach K's hill climbing strategy - running up the hill in a zig-zag form. I'm not even kidding when I say we ran up that hill pretending like we were airplanes (wings out and all!) - I spent more time laughing at myself and "flying" then I did paying attention to the hill I was climbing. Whatever gets the job done!

When all was said and done we finished in 72 minutes (that is INCLUDING 4 short water stops). MUCH better than I expected. I have never been able to carry a 10 minute pace that long - yay for improvement!

Workouts Last Week:
Sunday: Off
Monday: 3 miles/ Body Pump (weight training)
Tuesday: Off
Wednesday: 4.2
Thursday: 6.2
Friday: 0ff
Saturday: 7

I also want to thank everyone who has helped me reach the point I'm at. I owe my friends, especially Megan, a BIG thank you for letting me vent about my training and share my successes. To everyone who has contributed to help "wipe out" blood cancer - I can't thank you enough!

If you haven't and would like to contribute, there is a link to my TNT page in the top right-hand corner of my blog.

xxo D

A Marathon Runner's Favorite Things...

I can guarantee you won't run out and buy "Dana's Favorite Things" (as you might with Oprah's)...but if you ever decide to run more than 5 miles, take my advice!


These babies are my beloved spandex shorts (not these exact ones, but you get the point). They may be hideous looking, but they are a MUST, and I mean MUST! Now, unless you are rail-thin, PLEASE don't wear them by themselves... esp. if you are a 60+ male.


Next we have the delicious tasting GU. These guys come in handy during long runs. I am definitely not a GU aficionado quite yet - most people don't use these unless they are running reeeally long distances. I happened to be at Sports Authority the other day, and decided to pick a few up to see which flavors I liked. Why would someone make an energy gel in a "Latte" flavor, or how about "Margarita"? I was nauseated just thinking about it, nevermind in the middle of a 10 mile run!
Ya ya ya, I know it's just a hat...but this is one of my best purchases yet. This Nike hat has seen me through many runs thus far, keeping my face from turning into a tomato. I also, doesn't hurt that it looks cute - I like to think of it as an accessory to my running outfit:)






This is my Nike running tracker thing (not sure of it's official name). You attach a wireless adapter to your iPod, and then attach the chip to your shoe. It keeps track of distance, pace and calories burned. I LOVE it!






I have tried EVERY dry fit, cool max, cool mesh sock out there and these are by far the best! They are so thin, you barely feel like you are wearing anything. The sock has two layers to it, so instead of your foot rubbing against the sock and creating blisters, it just rubs against the other layer.

ADIOS WEEK SIX!

Hola! Another week down, phew! I actually had a GREAT week, despite the disgustingly humid weather we had. Poor Scott, his AC broke the 1st night of the heatwave - I stayed far away from his house...it was STEAMY!

I tried to beat the heat by running early in the am or late at night. A few days it was manageable, but others it was (no joke) 80 degrees at 7 am. I will admit though, I did use the heat as an excuse for 2 days, but that was as long as I was gonna hold out - I had 6 miles to look forward to on Saturday.

On Sunday I did my 3-mile recovery run at the gym - I was going for a semi-decent pace...3 miles in 27 minutes. I hate the treadmill, I always feel like I am going faster than I really am. I took Monday and Tuesday off and then added on a few miles since I was a slacker:) Wednesday I met Heather in Grafton for a 4.2 mile run. It was pretty gross out, but having someone to talk to made it bearable. The next day I decided to make up for lost miles and head back to Grafton (this time by myself) to do the same 4.2 miler. It didn't go as smoothly and wasn't nearly as fun as having company with me! It was HOT, and the last 2 miles of the run happened to be in direct sunlight and on a busy road.

Friday am was a first...Scott and I went on our first run together (...hahha). It was a quick 2.5, I didn't want to over-do it since the team run was the next am. The little stinker tried to show me up! It went like this: Me jumping up on my soap box trying to give him "advice" and him trying to tell me I am wrong or "that's not how he does it". I'm sure anyone who heard us got a good laugh out of it! Surprisingly, we run well together...if he's lucky I'll let him come with me again!:)

Our Saturday run went AWESOME! We ran 6 miles (6.2 to be exact) through the back roads of Grafton - beautiful! My friend Catherine and I run at pretty much the same pace so we stayed together, pushing one another along when needed. We started off too fast and quickly learned it wasn't gonna be a pleasant run if we didn't slow down a bit. We set goals throughout the run and found that to help a lot. We had 2 big hills (one short and steep and one long and gradual) to conquer, and we delivered. It's amazing how your body can recover when running. For example, after the 1st hill (which was awwwful) I thought I was gonna pass out. It's amazing what a little deep breathing and mind games can do. We were both in good spirits the whole way talking about everything from matching running outfits to our much anticipated J Lo booties.

So far, so good!:)

* I have decided to post my prior week training schedule, not what I want to do this coming week, it always changes!

So last week...

Sunday: 3
Monday: Nada
Tuesday: Nada
Wednesday: 4.2
Thursday: 4.2
Friday: 2.5
Saturday: 6.2

'til next weeek!

xxo d

PLEASE!PLEASE!PLEASE! (...I'm starting to get reeeeeeeally nervous about this money raising thing)
http://pages.teamintraining.org/ma/nikesf08/dweinstein

WEEK FIVE.

Hey everyone, here we are...week 5! Time is flying and not gonna lie...I'm starting to get freaked out by what's ahead of me! Everything started off slow, the miles were manageable...well not so much the case anymore! I was looking at my training schedule and starting around week 12, we have 5 mile "recovery" runs after our LONG Saturday team runs. After I run a cool 15 miles they want me to wake up the next morning and bust out another 5?? That is NOT my definition of recovery. There's not much I can do at this point...it is what it is.

Nothing crazy-exciting happened during week 5 (no fun Vegas-like stories to report...bummer), in fact it was verrrry quiet. I wasn't feelin' the motivation. I did not want to run. At all. A big thanks to my friend Megan, who kept me company on a few occasions last week. We had made plans to run and throughout the day I'd send her random e-mails and texts saying, "I'm too tired, ice cream instead?!", "I don't feel good, rain check??". Of course she wasn't buyin' it. Her response? "Tough. See you at 7". Thanks Meg! What would I do without you?!

Last week may not have been my best week, but I did stay committed to my schedule (the runs at least), there were a few small stops thrown in there, but I got through it.

Saturday was our team run. We had 5 miles on the agenda, not bad, right? I didn't think so. That was until we got LOST around mile 5. Yup, we got lost. My positive attitude took a dive when I learned we were gonna have to tack on 2 extra miles (ALL uphill mind you) onto the end. During the run I am pretty sure I was cursing to myself in hopes it would make me so mad I'd run faster. No such luck.

I'm feeling pretty good after the 7 miles. I'm actually not sore at all, it's a miracle. Our recovery run today was 3 miles (which I did on the treadmill because it's 9 million degrees and humid out), which is still in the good 'ol "recovery" category for me.

Week six workout schedule:
Sunday: 3 miles
Monday: Yoga
Tuesday: 3 miles
Wednesday: XT 40 minutes
Thursday: 4 miles
Friday: Off (maybe some XT)
Saturday: 6 miles

Thanks again for the support everyone! xxxo D

Keep those donations coming!
http://pages.teamintraining.org/ma/nikesf08/dweinstein