Big D Climb - it's More than Just Climbing 52 Flights of Stairs

I got a wonderful email from the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society with a PDF file attached, it is the training schedule for the Big D Climb I am completing as one of my 24 events in the 2010 Bike Run Yoga Challenge.

After looking at the training schedule, I might want to rethink my strategy. The first week looks fine, it is just basic training kind of things and it says after the first week the average person should be able to complete 5 - 7 minutes of consistent stair travel. Sounds easy right? When I think about how long it takes me to go up three flights of stairs at work and how winded I am, I am thinking 5 - 7 minutes is going to kick my butt.

From Blog

But that isn't the worst part. Week 2 wants me to jump rope for 5 minutes. Just once a week but 5 minutes?! My trainer at the gym tried to get me to jump rope for just 30 seconds at a time...it was a sight to see. Picture the worst jump rope jumper and then times that by 10 and that was me. The rope would get tangled around my legs. I couldn't actually jump rope by jumping up, the only way I managed to do it was the way I did when I was a kid and it is more like skipping rope. I spent more time restarting or untangling myself. Hysterical to watch.

I was so bad at it my trainer gave up and she found a different exercise for me.

So in my true rebel fashion, I don't think I will stick to the training schedule, though it was nice of them to send it, I always enjoy knowing what I SHOULD be doing. The only correct training schedule I stuck to this year was my Team in Training schedule for my San Diego Marathon. The rest of the events I did I only half trained if at all. I never had a injury and my recovery period for most events is very short. I contribute most of my success in avoiding injuries to yoga. Being flexible makes you nimble and able to withstand many things.

Bike Run Yoga...that's my tri 2010 Event Challenge: Commit Today!

Bike | Run | Yoga by Comfycrafter

2010 Bike Run Yoga Challenge is HERE!! 

Bike Run Yoga…that’s my tri is about being healthy and doing what you love. I personally am not a fan, yet, of swimming so my ideal triathlon would be one where I could Bike, Run and do Yoga. This year, 2009, I challenged myself to complete 12 events in cycling, running or yoga. This was 11 more events than I had done the year before! And I did it! Just this past weekend I ran my 3^rd half marathon of the year and it marked the end of my challenge.


Before this year I worked out modestly and had done some cycling and yoga but mostly PAID for yoga memberships and gym memberships with little “attendance.” I sat on the couch after work and watched tv or I would just surf the net all night. I was gaining weight and I had two choices, spend money to get new clothes or get and up and get exercising!


January 2009 started off with attendance at a Team in Training meeting in hopes of learning how to run a 5K and swim enough so I could do a sprint tri. At the meeting I phoned My friend Ginny and she somehow convinced me to run a marathon and that is how this all started.


As 2009 winds down, I’m already looking ahead to 2010 and my new challenge, 24 events in 2010! I’ve got my first one picked out, January 1 I am running the New Years 5K in Dallas, Texas.


Join me in this awesome personal challenge where you are sure to find out many things about yourself, perhaps the most important is that you can do anything you set your mind to. You CAN do it!


2010 Bike Run Yoga Challenge
How to enter:

1.      Post a Comment on this blog that you are committing to the challenge

2.      Follow the Bike Run Yoga blog

Requirements:

1. Make a commitment to the challenge (this means post a comment here and tell me you are doing the challenge)
2. Complete 24 events (Tri, duathlon, run, ride, swim, yoga or other organized event)
3. Must be a finisher at the event (we use the honor system for verification)
4. Submit your events, email address, full name and shipping address to Bike Run Yoga no later than January 5, 2011

What do you get? 


A free Bike Run Yoga T-shirt with all your events listed on the back. The events will be listed on the back with the name of the event and the event date. It will be custom made for you and shipped to you in 4-6 weeks.

Not enough incentive? 


Get paid to complete events! Buy a Bike Run Yoga T-shirt and wear it at your event. For every picture you send in with a Bike Run Yoga Shirt on and your number, Bike Run Yoga will give you $5. You must complete the Challenge to be eligible and all funds will be paid upon completion of the Challenge. If you wear a Bike Run Yoga T-shirt for all 24 events, you will get $120!


Here is a list of events I’m doing in 2010, it’s not a complete list but I’m working on it!

New Years Day 5K (Run) January 1

Too Cold to Hold 15K (Run) January 17

Big D Climb (Stair Climb) January 30

St. Patty’s Day Dash 5K (Run) March 13

Dallas Rock & Roll Half Marathon (Run) March 14

Tour Dallas (Ride) April 3

Big D ½ Marathon (Run) April 11

Too Hot to Handle 15K (Run) July

Hotter N Hell 100 (Ride) August

Tour Des Fleur's 10K (Run) September

Susan G Komen 5K (Run) October

Texas Yoga Asana Championships

Thundercloud Turkey Trot (Run) November

Mayors 5K (Run) December

Good Luck! I hope you will join me in this awesome challenge!
 
Questions? click here to email me.

Ran with Team in Training Today

I got up early today, 6 am, and ran with my Team in Training buddy Rhonda and her new Team in Training running group. Rhonda and I trained together for our first marathons in the Spring Team in Training season earlier this year and she has become a mentor this season to help others. I was planning on riding 80 miles today to prepare for Hotter N Hell next weekend but I have a kick off meeting for Light the Night in a bit and I wouldn't have been able to ride the full amount. So instead I opted to run six today and ride 80 tomorrow.

Today was a little harder than I expected. I contribute that to a few things, a little dehydrated from just not drinking enough water, not enough nutrition because in general I don't eat well and I had done zero cardio all week. The latter is probably the main reason and of course, the reason can NOT be that I am just plan out of shape. :)

I was impressed with the group, they all did a great job. Rhonda's group is much larger than ours from last season. Last season it was just Rhonda, Susan our mentor and me. This year Rhonda has 10-12 that run in her group. I think that is better, gives you more people to talk to and bond with and when you lag behind a bit it is less noticeable because of all the people!

As usually I sweated like a horse. Is that even a real saying? Do horses sweat? I think the real saying is "sweat like a race horse" or is that "I have to pee like a race horse"? Whatever, I sweated, A LOT! (This will become a running theme in my blogs, no pun intended! LOL)

Since I hadn't done any cardio workout during the week I was huffing a bit and I'm pretty sure the look on my face was not pretty. I tend to grimace when I run like I am in constant pain, even when I'm not. Which is so funny because when I do yoga I have no expression on my face, even when the posture is really hard. Different sports, different facial expressions I guess.

The lake where Team in Training runs was packed. It was such a nice morning I guess everyone took the opportunity to come out and get their exercise on. As we were coming back towards the cars I was stuck by a man that had the WHITEST teeth! His mouth was slightly open and against his tan skin his teeth really stuck out. It reminded me of the Friends episode where Ross whitens his teeth right before a big date and the glow from being so bleached. This guy had teeth like that! Made me laugh which I needed at mile 5 of 6.

Thanks Rhonda for letting me tag along today, great run. You have an awesome group of runners! Off to the Light the Night Kick Off Meeting!

The Week of Two Ten's

Here is an exert from my marathon experience earlier this year. My Team in Training group was running 20 miles this particular weekend and I was in Austin so I ran with my friend Ginny and we didn't like the idea of running 20 miles so it became our weekend to run two ten mile runs back to back. The mind is a powerful thing!

5/11/09 - The Week of Two Ten's. My friend Ginny and I are running the San Diego Marathon together at the end of May. She has been training on her own but matching the Team in Training schedule and decided to come to Austin with me to run 20 miles this past Saturday. In talking, we decided 20 miles was too much and way to overwhelming and we would rather run 2 - 10 mile segments. So it was the weekend of Two Ten's. Our first mistake might have been not running on Thursday like we were scheduled, instead we ran Friday morning. I wear so much technical equipment on my arms, I managed to chaff the inside of my left arm pretty raw. Who would have thought I would need Body Glide for just three miles?! I put Neosporin on it and tried to let it air out and at least scab over but I sweat so much I knew Saturday was not going to be very fun. Then, some how on the way down to Austin Ginny and I managed to damage ourselves even more, she with a pinch mark from the seatbelt that welted up and me with a large scrap on my leg. We looked like we had been through the ringer and we hadn't even run yet!

We had discussed our route and decided to stick close to Town Lake because several running stores provide water and it is fairly safe. It was abnormally hot and humid, only adding to the joy of running Two Ten's. Our plan was to run up Congress, around the capital, down to the lake and around the lake twice.

Somewhere around mile 14 or 4 of my second 10, I knew my knees were really mad and the remaining 6 were going to be pretty tough. But I was on the downward slope so I kept going. The nice thing about the Nike ipod sensor is the count down of miles so it tells you how much more you have to go. The down side is it tells you how much farther you have to go. Pushing the button every few seconds doesn't make it tell you less distance faster...it is very methodical that way. Mile 18 I realized I had gone as far as my last long run and I only had two more miles to go. That isn't hard right? Two miles, less than a 5K...easy breezy. As my watch beeps for me to run another 5 minute...I winch at the thought of picking up my legs one more time. My walk is more dragging of my feet and I notice my shoes are covered in dust from the trail.

I managed to get all the way around the lake twice and had about a mile left. I ran up Congress and around a few buildings, well, walked/hobbled around a few buildings and was never more happy than when the ipod said I had completed my workout! Such joy! I had made it! Two Ten's!

I ran 26.2!

6/3/09 - I ran 26.2!
I made it! What an amazing journey this has been! Thank you so much for all the support, donations and words of encouragement! I could not have done it without you!

San Diego was beautiful, it was overcast most of the time we were there and stayed at a fairly nice 60-70 degrees temperature, really ideal for running. On race day I got up at 4:00 am, got dressed, ate a bagel and rolled my legs on the foam roller. We took the Team in Training shuttle to the starting line and met up with thousands of other Team in Training runners, dropped off the gear bag and then waited. And waited, and waited.

As Ginny and I were waiting, we realized that neither of us brought a watch! This normally would not be a problem for the average runner but since I run intervals, meaning, I run 5 minutes and then walk 1 minute, this was a bit of an issue. I decided however, there are thousands of other TNT runners so we can either just piggy back off their times or we can just run until we want to stop and then walk. No biggie...

We get in our corral and wait for the start. And...we are off! Of course we are walking because we are so far back but whatever...we started. As we get closer the announcers tell us to cheer and put our hands in the air. "Wave! You are on camera!"

Around mile 2 I tossed my trash bag and throw away sweatshirt and could feel the sweat already starting to bubble up, I knew then it was going to be a long day. Miles 9 and 10 were rough, the road was angled really bad and lots of it was up hill. Mile 13.1 had all the TNT half marathoners off to the side, they were all laughing and cheering, it looked like such a great party...I so wanted to stop at that point! Ginny kindly reminded me we are not halfers so I kept going. The TNT people were great, coaches and cheer groups seemed to be all at the right places to help you get past the pain. Mile 22 Coach Colby walked with me, I think we must have walked almost the whole mile. He didn't care, all he wanted me to do was run or in my case, walk "my race." And that I did. As I walked up the hill I slowly forced my legs to manage what I will call running. About mile 23, some of the best moments started to be the sight of the next mile marker, they seemed to get farther and farther apart.

At this point my arches hurt, the tops of my feet hurt from my shoes, my knees hurt in all directions, I'm pretty sure my shins were plotting against me and my abs felt like someone had punched me in the stomach. I'm not sure how I managed to make it the last few miles...walked most of it, tried to run some but it felt like running was just as fast as some peoples walk.

I made it to about 25.5 at saw Coach Joe, my coach for the last 4 months. I almost cried. He walked with me to 26. As we were walking, he asked me how I felt. I said I hurt, all over. But as I thought about how I was feeling, it truly was nothing compared to those that have cancer. The pain I felt goes away, it heals itself and in a day or two I am back to my normal life. It was an overwhelming feeling to walk with Joe and realize what I was doing and who I was doing it for. The run was not just for me, it was for all those that couldn't run too.

As I reflect on the race weekend and the 4 months of training, I can honestly say I am glad I challenged myself to run a marathon and I am especially glad I ran my first one with Team in Training. What a great group of people! Thank you to Coach Joe, Mentor Susan and all the Team in Training staff, I could not have done it without you!

If you are thinking of challenging yourself or just wanting to give to a great cause, may I suggest Team in Training? The Leukemia and Lymphoma Society provides resources for vital research and patient services. Each donation helps accelerate finding a cure for leukemia, lymphoma and myeloma. More than 823,000 Americans are battling these blood cancers.

On behalf of The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society, thank you all so much for your support!

Body Glide is a Good Thing

4/28/09 - When I was thinking in January of something to do with my free time that would allow me to meet new people in Dallas and be active, the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society Team in Training seemed to be the perfect solution. Wow, I never knew how perfect that would be, such a great group of people, a wonderful cause and the perfect training program.

I ran 18 miles with my group on Saturday, again, the longest distance to date. We ran up Flagpole hill, if you live in Dallas, feel free to try it! It has to be a solid three minutes of running a steady incline. To be fair, I did not make it to the top, I had to stop and walk the last little bit but we did another hill around White Rock Lake, perhaps equally long and I made it to the top of that one.

I bought new shoes and that seems to have helped with the massive knee and foot arch pain. I was feeling pretty good at 15; I struggled through the last three but still felt better than my last long run. I also found out what Body Glide is for- chafing. I never thought I needed it until after I finished 18 miles and realized my bra top had been rubbing under my arm and around my chest- I know have lovely rash markings. I am not sure if they are as bad as all the scars I have from falling off the bike but they at least run a close second. Gum and Body Glide - must haves in San Diego.

I Have Officially Run in My First Marathon.

4/13/09 - I have officially run in my first marathon. Granted, it was a half, but for those of you who do not know, that is 13.1 miles! I decided to run in the Big D marathon/half marathon after I realized I could not ride 30 miles and run 13 all in the same day. The Big D half marathon was my answer! So I ran Sunday, April 5, 2009 13.l miles and finished in 2 hours 40 minutes 23 seconds. This time is the fastest run I have had to date! Running with others really made a difference, I think this was a good test for how San Diego will go.

I also ran 13 miles this past weekend in Austin. It took me 4 minutes longer but in my defense, I had more obstacles and no gum! Gum you ask?! Well, apparently gum is the magic to running long distances, that and an ipod with great music. I got started and ran about 5 minutes and realized I had not remembered gum. I toughed it out but honestly, I'm not sure those around me appreciated it. I found myself humming and grunting a lot which I don't recall doing when I have gum. So, must remember gum!

And oh, the knees! Goodness! I am normally not prone to injuries which I attribute to the yoga I have been doing but lately on long runs my knees ache and have a hard time working. So if you see me hobbling around, just know it is because I probably ran over 13 miles!

Team in Training Beginning - Marathon Training

1/21/09 - Thank you to all of you who have donated or given me encouragement and words of wisdom! We haven't officially started our training but almost everyone I know that has done a half marathon or full marathon insisted I start running NOW! So, I've started running!

I mostly run on the treadmill because for one, it is darn cold here in Dallas and two, I am scare to run outside for fear I will run to a spot and be too tired to run back!

It was a beautiful day this past Sunday though and I had missed yoga class already so I decided to put on my running shoes and hit the road. I went down to the lake and ran what I thought was a long distance. It turned out not to be, only about a mile and a half but it was good practice. The wind around the lake makes it more difficult too, or at least that is what I am going to tell myself!

My next goal is to run at least 2 miles around the lake. Some day I will run the full 9 mile lap and maybe start from the house, that would make it about 15 miles.