Monday, June 12, 2006

Sunday Long, Today a 1 Year Anniversary

Yesterdays run went pretty well I would say. We went 13 miles and are having tons of fun with the Jelly Belly Sports Beans. What I love about the beans is you don't have to take all of them at once, like you do with Gu. There are 100 calories per little package (~13 beans). Jason and I took one at Mile 3 and then every two miles after that. I just put one in my mouth and let it dissolve over about a 1/2 mile. Jason was describing it like having a gatorade drip in your mouth cause there is always this tasty taste in your mouth. You do need to make sure you have water nearby though because there is sodium in the beans and you will get thirsty if you don't have something to drink every once in awhile. Luckily we run along the lakefront where there are gobs of water fountains and since the Bean packet is so small it just fits into the inner pocket of our shorts and so still hands free!

No major problems yesterday, but my arch was really sore for about the first 5 miles. It loosened up after that (or something!) and we were able to finish really strong. Average pace for the run was 9:15 which again is in the perfect range (see numbers calculated last week). I just don't understand how we are going to run 8:15 miles for 26 miles....maybe this is where you have to trust your training? We had the one long mile in there because I stopped to try and tighten the laces on my shoes to help my arches. But other than that we were strong and smooth, running far and fast is always a nice way to end the week (my weeks start on Monday!). Check out the pace on the last two miles...we were flyin'!!!

So what's the one year anniversary? Wedding? No.

A year ago today my Dad and Step Mom left Chicago on their sailboat and sailed off into the sunrise. They have covered something like 3500 miles in a years time and have made it all the way to Clearwater, FL going through the great lakes and past New York City and down the east coast. I am so happy for them that they were able to do this. They sold ALL their stuff...Car, house, everything in the house and so on. In this world where we love our stuff and can't quite get enough of it, they live on their 40 foot boat and all they own is what is on the boat.

A year ago yesterday however, they had their going away party. Let's just say it wasn't pretty at the end of the night. No eating, running early in the morning and starting in on the Old Styles at about 11am, put that together with a tube top, 90 degrees and no sun screen and you might might say that Leah wasn't a happy camper the next morning. Put ALL that together with the fact that I didn't want them to go in the first place made Leah a really really unhappy camper. I am real real close with my parents (my mom told me about 2 weeks later that she was leaving the area as well at the end of the summer and moving to Florida...let's just say...running=good place to put frustration/sadness...everyone has a reason for running their first marathon right?) and so when they made the decision to be so far away I wasn't thrilled. There were tears and fights and broken radios....and in the end...

I still miss them. Every day I still want to say, "Oh maybe my Dad and Sue want to come to watch a Cubs game....oh wait they aren't here any more". BUT I am happier than I thought I would be FOR them. The thought of my dad growing old in Des Plaines is overly depressing and I would not have wanted to watch that happen. PLUS now I get it. I get to go visit them in exoctic place like (ok so far only!) New York City, Ft. Lauderdale and Clearwater at the end of the summer and then who knows...Mexico? Hawaii? Around the World? I know that their trip has taken some unexpected turns and they are in Clearwater for the next few months instead of Mexico but hey, that's what they signed up for. It's about as far away from that Des Plaines life that you could get.

At some point you have to let your parents go. They have wings and need to fly :-)

Congrats Dad & Sue...you are (as you have always been) a total inspiration for me. Happy Sailing, Happy Living.

8 comments:

Joe said...

Thanks for reviewing those jelly bean thingies. Are you going to use them during you marathon? If not, what are you going to do instead?

> Luckily we run along the lakefront where there
> are gobs of water fountains

Have you tried running with a water bottle yet? I bought a really comfortable water belt with an angled bottle holder a couple of weeks ago and I'm totally used to it now. I don't even feel it anymore.

> I just don't understand how we are going to run
> 8:15 miles for 26 miles

I wonder during every "at pace" training run! I think we must all have a clone who trains at altitude and secretly replaces us on race day. How else can you explain the race day heroics?

> and then who knows...Mexico? Hawaii? Around the World?

Tell them to come to Vancouver! They can moor at Granville Island. Then you and Jason can visit them and we can all go for some training runs in Stanley Park.

LeahC said...

Have you tried running with a water bottle yet?

Since I run on the lake front path about 99% of the time...where there is water right there (there are water fountains about every 1/4-1/2 mile!!!!), I don't need to run with a water bottle. However, since we sometimes need to run at work we'll have to think of something. Last week we just dropped a water bottle off at about 1/2 through the route. Worked fine, but needs some tweaking.

I won't carry a water bottle in the marathon so I like to train like I will race. I am super lucky though because of the water fountains...if I didn't live here I suppose I would have to come up with something else.

I think we might take the beans in the marathon but also have the option of gatorade in the race which we don't have now so we'll have to see how the rest of the summer plays out.

Thanks for the mooring tip...I'm sure my dad is writing it down in his journal even as we speak :-)

Joe said...

With my first half marathon quickly approaching, I'm starting to obsess about hydration and fueling strategies. The half marathon will have aid stations with water and Gatorade every 3K . In addition, I'm thinking of bringing a gel (or two, or three) with me. I'm wondering when and how much to drink and eat. Any advice? The race starts at 7 AM and the temperature should't get much higher than about 60F-65F during the race.

LeahC said...

hi joe-

i think you are obsessing about fuel/hydrating and there is no need to. I don't think you need any gels. When we ran indy we only stopped for gatorade twice anad water like once. It is possible to overhydrate and then you feel just as bad as if you didn't hydrate. you could risk getting sick.

that being said, I think you should follow what you are doing in your training. If you have been taking gels, then you should take them in the race. I don't take anything when I run, so I don't tend to take anything other than gatorade in the race. I am just now starting to test out the Beans when our distance hit 13 miles.

I think with the temps the way they are you could get away with just the gatorade, and every 3K is plenty. That is just my opinion though and again, follow what you have been doing in your training.

Good Luck!!!

Jason said...

Unless you generally chase the gu's with gatorade when you train, you should really probably pick one or the other. I've definitely heard of people getting sick from sugar overload when they combine gu and gatorade.

As Leah said, though, race like you trained.

LeahC said...

Ok after that long comment about fuel, I just want to say to follow your training. It's when you change stuff in your race that you come across problems!!!!

SRR said...

I was wondering about thos beans!

LeahC said...

running rabbit-give them a try....since they are so small you probably won't get sick because it's just one little bean at a time :-)