Six in the City

Today I did 6 miles in downtown Memphis. Running by the river always cheers me up and today, I especially needed some cheer. This has been a particularly bad week for me. When I showed up for today's 6 miles, I fully expected to do 6 laps around the St. Jude campus, figuring I'd be lucky if I could even do half the distance. But my two teammates wouldn't hear of it. Morris would be running ahead of me and Lenore would be walking behind me -- I was literally book ended by the two of them. When I made it back to campus, I was in a lot of pain and was determined to call it quits at 5.39 miles. Morris would have nothing of that. He cheered me on and encouraged me not only to get to the 6 mile mark, but to add a lap around campus for a total of 6.39 miles. So tonite, even though I am quite sore and can barely walk, I feel like I really accomplished something today. Now, I just hope I can recover in time for our 10 miler next Saturday.

It has been difficult for me to accept my limitations of late and I have a hard time not looking out too far into the future. I don't have to determine today that my marathon days are over. I don't have to determine today that my half-marathon days are over. Today, I had 6 miles to cover. Today, I determined (with the help of my friends) that I could not only do it, but I could go just a little bit farther. Today, that's good enough for me because I...

Gotta run...

Lisa :)

4 Miler

While it's quite an accomplishment for me to blog 2 days in a row, I am most proud of this morning's 4 miler. I anticipated it wouldn't be much to write about since I ran a 5k last nite. I assumed I would be walking most of it. I didn't get to sleep until almost 1am to boot. When I arrived on the St. Jude campus, I was really not wanting to go the distance and when at 8:05am no one else had shown up, I thought I might just go back home and go to bed. Just as I was about to go to my car, Morris & Laurie showed up raring to go. Oh well, I thought, I'm just going to walk so it'll be fine.

But something happened out there that caught me completely by surprise. My body wanted to run! So, I ran. Now, I took walk breaks but I really felt like I ran more than I walked. My Garmin supports that theory. I am a slow runner but an even slower walker. I cannot seem to walk any faster than a 17:00 - 18:00 pace on my walk breaks. This is something I'd really like to work on but running always seems to be the area I prefer to work on. Now, these numbers are not speedy by any stretch of the imagination but for me at this time (I'm still in a major funk but I can see the light at the end) these numbers are quite encouraging to me. Mile 1 - 13:13; Mile 2 - 13:42; Mile 3 - 13:16; Mile 4 - 13:20. I finally feel like I'm getting somewhere.

Now to deal with the residual aches & pains but it is to be expected when you just...

Gotta run...
Lisa :)

True Blue 5k

You gotta love a 5k that winds thru the campus of your alma mater and "spits" you out thru the giant tiger's mouth after you cross the finish line!

Sorry for the blur -- the BB doesn't take the best photos. :(

This was a really weird race for me. For some reason, I felt really out of place. Perhaps it was because my last 5k was so disastrous. Perhaps it's because I haven't felt much like a runner lately. Whatever the reason, I felt odd but I was determined to "stick it out" and see if I could redeem myself with a better finishing time than the last 5k I did about a month ago. Besides, the more people watching I did, the more comfortable I became. I noticed all these "runners" who looked fit, dressed the part, doing these amazing stretches. They looked like real pros I tell ya with one exception, they had their bib numbers pinned on their backs instead of the front. I thought maybe that's what you do now -- after all, I haven't been participating in many races lately. Anyway, when it came time to line up at the start line, I made my way to the back of the pack. That is where I feel like I belong. I heard a guy mumble under his breath, "it goes on the front, doofus" and I was relieved. I hadn't missed the memo about the new rules about proper bib placement. As the race began, I enjoyed picking off "those" runners who started out way too fast and pooped out at mile 2. I wasn't fast mind you, but there's a lot to be said for slow and steady. While I didn't PR tonite (thankfully, I wasn't expecting to) it was a great run for me. I ran/walked in 40 minutes and some change. So while I may not be completely back in the game, I'm definitely moving in the right direction. YES!!!!!!

Gotta run...

Lisa :)

ThermoBurst + Cool Temps = AWESOME 7 Miler

Wow! What a morning! The team & I decided to change our venue and meet at Shelby Farms for our 7 miler. It was downright cold at 7:30am! There was only 3 of us who braved the temps and the distance but we were so glad we did. There's something about cooler weather that just breathes new life into my running. A good friend of mine also introduced me to an energy supplement, ThermoBurst, which really helped too! I was energized from start to finish and even ran to my car afterwards! My usual, pre-run, Grande, No Fat, No Foam Latte was never able to do this! I felt so good that at one point, when my Garmin beeped to tell me it was time for a walk break, I actually uttered an, "oh crap" out loud. Now, I have been known to utter many "oh craps" when my Garmin beeps but those are ALWAYS when it beeps to tell me to RUN not WALK! I was so surprised by this -- when I looked at my Garmin, I was doing a 9:50 pace. I don't know how long I ran at this pace (probably not very long) but I was impressed that not only was I running that fast but I didn't want to stop!

It's runs like today that remind me why I love it so much. The weather was perfect, the scenery with the changing of the leaves was gorgeous and the lungs and the legs were completely in sync -- AWESOME! There's just nothing more that I can say other than...

Gotta run!
Lisa :)

Technology is awesome!

Sitting in the car rider line IthoghtI would try blogging from my BB. And I didn't even need my 11 year old to help!

Running on the River

Today was our 4th group training -- 5 miles. I have to say I was more than anxious about how this would go. After last week's 5k and the lousy weather we've had lately, I really didn't know what was in store. The weather held up nicely and we only experienced a few sprinkles about half way thru but they were a welcome relief as the temps weren't quite as cool as I had hoped for. I mapped out a route that was a "bit" more challenging than our usual, flat laps around the St Jude campus. We ran the Auction Street bridge over to Mud Island, did 3 miles on the trail parallel to the river (it was gorgeous, even on a cloudy day!) Then back over the bridge and back to campus. My 1st run up the bridge was tough. Here lately, I don't find my rhythm until after the 1st 2 miles. But, on the way back over, I ran the entire uphill and coasted (not walked) down the other side. I finished slow but strong. This was just the success I needed after last weekend which taught me that you must respect the miles. Whether they be short or long, if you're not prepared, it's gonna be ugly. The 5 miler today taught me that even though I have a lot of work to do, I CAN DO IT! Whew!!!

The rest of the team did awesome! Only 6 of our 18 members made it out today but what we lacked in numbers, we made up in enthusiasm. Everyone left feeling proud and accomplished -- the bridge was a killer. We felt like we climbed Everest! On an early, humid morning a speed bump would have been enough. I was very proud of them too! Whether I have a right to or not, I feel like a mother hen when it comes to my team. Their successes are my successes and their failures are my failures. Fortunately, there have been no failures -- this is a great group and they are more than willing to put the work into their training. It's exciting!

I had hoped that Mark would have been able to join us today. One of the greatest feelings in this whole process is that I will running this half marathon with my husband. But, unfortunately Ian came home from school yesterday with a cough and a fever. We suspect it's the flu -- we will be taking him to the Dr. shortly to find out for certain.

Hopefully, next week's report will be just as encouraging. I will no longer underestimate 3 miles so anything can happen. Stay tuned but for now...

Gotta run!
Lisa :-)

1st Group Training Session

Our 1st group training session was held Saturday at 8am on the St. Jude campus. The weather was absolutely gorgeous! There were scattered T-showers in the forecast but it was sunny and slightly cool at the start. We were scheduled for 2 miles -- 2 laps around the campus. Of our 15 members, 8 showed up -- a great turnout considering this is a holiday weekend.



Training went well and everyone had a good walk or run. What an inspiration to run at the very place we are raising money for. It has really helped my running to not only have a longer distance to be training for but a cause and a purpose behind it. Who knows, my marathon days may not be over after all.



I'm really looking forward to more group walks/runs and helping the kids at St. Jude. But for now...



Gotta run...

Lisa :)

www.mystjudeheroes.org/rundream