Wednesday, October 20, 2010

Tales from the Crypt....Marathon #2 Recap!

I've put off writing this for as long as possible.  I'm afraid soon the whole day will be erased from my mind completely!  I've always used my blog as a way to get out my feelings.  I don't show emotion well in real-life, so this is a good venue for doing so.  I'll apologize now for those that may be reading this....

The hours leading up to the marathon I could tell something was "off".  Although I knew I had put in every.single.mile. on my training plan, I still didn't feel prepared.  However, I also remember vaguely feeling that way last year and before my first half-marathon.  You see, as a student, I was always the one who had prepared well for a test, but was still cramming more info into my brain right up until the very last moment.  The whole tapering phenomenon in running goes against this method.  Of course I also understand why it's important to taper, too.  In any case, I was hoping the "race day adrenaline" would make up for whatever didn't get crammed into my body and brain over the past 16 weeks.

It was a busy few days prior to the marathon.  No big deal, I'd done this before.  I can handle anything, right?!  After running errands for 3 hours Saturday morning, we were finally ready to hit the road to Columbus.  If you've read any of my race recaps in the past, you know one of my pre-race rituals is eating chicken and dumplings from Cracker Barrel.  This time was no different.  After lunch we made our way downtown to the Expo.  I wasn't expecting much from the Expo and with the kids in tow, I knew I wouldn't be able to enjoy it anyway.  We made our way through the expo, picked up my shirt and bib and headed back out.  I was really hoping to get a zip-up hoodie/jacket with the marathon logo on it, but all they had left were ones that said "13.1".  Bummer.  I did get a shirt that I saw there last year that says "Run Ohio".  Hubby got me away from the expo with only $15 out of pocket.  What a deal!

After the expo we headed back out of downtown and to the hotel/waterpark where the kids, my parents, and my sister's family would be spending the night and celebrating my nephew's 4th birthday party.  It was a really neat place, from what I could see.  I didn't bring my swimsuit (on purpose), so I sat on the sidelines and watched.  Around dinnertime I ordered carry-out from the Olive Garden and had round 2 of carbo-loading for the day.  About 8:30 pm hubby and I packed up our stuff, said our goodbyes to the kids and headed back downtown to our hotel.

After checking into the hotel I hurriedly got everything unpacked and ready for the next day.  Hubby was watching the Buckeyes lose to Wisconsin and it was just making my anxiety worse.  Finally he turned it off and we went to bed.  I laid there for what felt like forever, trying to sleep.  It was not a restful night's sleep, that's for sure.  I was well-awake by the time my alarm went off at 6:30am. The race was set to start at 7:30am....almost 3 hours later than what I was used to starting my training runs at! I got ready, took my gel and was walking out the door of the hotel by 7:05 am.  Just enough time to walk the few blocks to the starting line.  They were using corrals for the first time this year, which was meant to ease the congestion of previous years.  Unfortunately I think I got there a tad bit too late....because me and probably about 5,000 other runners were stuck on the outside of the corrals when the gun went off.  The spectators had jammed the sidewalks full, making it difficult to get anywhere, let alone find the one tiny little opening into your corral. It was a mass of humanity and I was on the verge of getting panicky with closterphobia (a first).   Made for a tense few minutes leading up to crossing the starting line, but alas I was off and running.

Miles 0-6

I crossed the starting line about 5 minutes after the gun went off.  The first mile I just focused on finding my comfortable pace.  I had pretty much abandoned the idea of aiming for a 4:30 finish.  I wanted to enjoy this experience and I knew focusing on my watch/pace would not allow that.  I had  re-calibrated my Garmin (FR 60) earlier in the week to make sure it was accurate for the race, but when I got to the first mile marker and my watch only read "0.97", I knew it was off.  I also knew I had no idea what pace I was actually running.  This was not good.  I contemplated turning my watch off at that point, but I figured I could at least keep track of my overall time.  Having a pace band would have been mighty helpful at this point, but I hadn't even seen the pace groups at the expo.  The next few miles slowly crawled by and I focused on reaching the 6 mile marker, when I would stop and take my first Shot Bloks.  Running felt hard and I was already tired.  Then I remembered that the first few miles were a gradual incline.  I figured once we had turned the corner, it would get easier.  It never did, despite the course leveling off.  This was just a sign of things to come.  Around mile 5, I caught up with the 4:30 pace group.  I settled into a comfortable pace behind them and thought things were starting to look up.  Mile 6 came and although I had been looking forward to stopping for a few seconds to take my Shot Bloks and stretch my calves, I didn't want to lose sight of the pace group, so I took the Shot Bloks on the run.  I figured I'd be seeing hubby soon, and I'd stop briefly then.  So I kept on with the 4:30 pace group in sight.  I had slowed a bit while trying to chew/swallow/drink, but I kept up pretty well.

Miles 7 - 13
I see hubby for the first time around mile 7.  I fake a smile and a "I feel good!", stretched my calves and started running again.  Only, the pace group was off in the distance now and I didn't even have the desire to catch them.   I was still tired and my legs/lungs/mind were noticing every.little.incline.  Where were these inclines last year?  I surely hadn't noticed them and looking at the elevation profile, they were nothing!  That's when I realized it just wasn't going to be my day.  I had a long, long way to go and I had already given up.  I didn't care anymore and was fine with walking the whole thing if I had to.  Quitting wasn't an option, but walking definitely was.  I thought about crying, but that would have just taken more energy that I didn't have.  I tried to bolster my dying energy with an early dose of the Shot Bloks.  This just made me more thirsty, so I drank more, which just made me feel too full.  By mile 13 when I saw my hubby again, he knew I was in trouble.  He tried to lift my spirits, but there was no use. I was walking about 1-2 minutes out of every mile.  I felt like a loser and undeserving to be out on the marathon course.  I also knew I was heading into the worst part of the course.  I put my iPod on, cranked the music and tried to make the most out of it.

Miles 14-20

The next few miles take you through The Ohio State University campus.  I graduated from OSU in 2000 and generally love any chance to go back. You'd think that with OSU being one of the largest schools in the nation, that there would be decent crowd support.  Wrong!  I knew this would be the case though.  I took my third dose of Shot Bloks around mile 16.  I kept on running/walking until I reached mile 17 and thought...."holy cow, I've just 'run' 17 miles without much effort."  I also knew my sister would be waiting for me around mile 20. This gave me an instant lift as I started to tear up just thinking about seeing her.  I knew the next few miles would be desolate, but I didn't even care.  I suddenly had a new mission! 

Miles 20-26.2

With 10K to go and my sister in sight, I had a new lease on life.  I was so happy to see her.  It was time for another dose of the Shot Bloks, so we started off our journey together walking.  And that's when I broke it to her that I was mentally defeated and had walked what seemed like a good portion of the course.  Being the good big sister that she is, she gave me some encouraging words and let me take the lead.  Having her with me gave me the motivation to keep running.  We'd walk through the water stops and every so often thereafter, but I set my goals for my walk breaks further apart than I had been doing.  Ever so slowly and with constant encouragement from my sister, we finally made our way to mile 25, where I saw my hubby again.  I think he thought I had died out there...because he was so happy to us coming down the road.  He jumped off the sidewalk and started running along side of me. I kept on running, despite wanting to stop and walk.  I think the longest segment of continuous running (after the 7th mile) may have been between miles 24-26.2!  He eventually sped up and went on to find the rest of my family, waiting around mile 26.  I remember practically floating down that section last year, but this year it took all I had just to keep running.  My sister pointed out the family and she dropped off to the side with them.  They cheered as I passed and I kept on going.  The last 0.2 were all me and it seemed like an eternity.  Finally, with the downhill finish line in sight, I took a deep breath and opened my eyes for the first time all day.  I took in the crowd and the excitement and was so just so happy to be done.  I got my medal, took a picture and headed for the food tables.  Most of the food was gone.  Par for the course on this race day.  Water, bananas, bagels, corn chips, soft pretzel bites and chicken broth.  None seemed appealing to me, but I settled on a banana and some corn chips. I made my way out of the recovery area and sat down.  It's really what I wanted to do all day, and it felt great.  My family eventually found me, we made plans to meet for lunch later and we headed back to the hotel.  My 3 year old had had enough and was in complete melt-down mode.  Just what you want to deal with after a marathon.  I ended up carrying her uphill, about 1/3 of a mile back to the hotel.  The perfect ending to a crappy day.  I haven't even brought myself to look at my official time...but it was somewhere around 4:57.

Post-Race Thoughts:

If you've followed my journey for any amount of time, you know that I don't run to "race" or set PRs.  You see, although I like to claim that I don't have a competitive bone in my body, that's not true.  The fact of the matter is that I am competitive about things I really care about, but I act like I don't care so that I don't end up disappointed.  It's my way of self-preservation.  I've never been exceptionally good at anything my whole life...and that's okay.  I've accepted mediocrity and if you don't set the bar very high, you can never fail.  So while I'm not entirely pleased with my time (because I honestly felt I was going to do better), that's not my biggest disappointment.

The biggest disappointment was that I didn't even enjoy the journey.  It was a gorgeous day, the streets were lined with people, the trees were at their peak of Fall coloring, we ran through beautiful neighborhoods, there were 80 entertainment groups along the course and I didn't really even "see" a thing.  All I could focus on was the misery I was in.  And it wasn't physical pain that I was so miserable from.  My misery came from mental weakness.  My body was tired, my mind wasn't in it and I gave up. Plain and simple.  I felt like I had blinders on throughout the entire race.  I didn't care that people were cheering for me, I didn't care that there were bands playing.  I didn't feel deserving of their cheers and was more annoyed than anything.  I know, I know...I'm horrible.  I did however graciously thank the volunteers at the water stops.  I mean, I was walking through them....I had the time!  At the end of the race, I had "run" 26.2 miles and I didn't even care.  It wasn't even a big deal because I had let myself down so badly.  Perhaps another self-preservation tatic?


So what's next?  If you would have asked me at mile 14 what's next, I probably would have said a profanity or two.  I was pretty sure Sunday was the end of my running career.  But after a few nights sleep and some time to digest the day's events, I'm pretty sure I'll run again. ;-)  I just need to relax and recover first.  One foot in front of the other....right?

Until next time....~Run Happy and Embrace Your Pace ~

Sunday, October 10, 2010

One week and counting...

I honestly don't know where the last 15 weeks went?  Between injury issues and the start of school, this training cycle has been a blur.  The good news is that I'm feeling GOOD and ready to run my next marathon.....a week from today.  Yeah...that nervous anxiety has already set in.  Watching/reading about Chicago today didn't help.  I have 2 more runs to get through this week.  It's always at this point in my training cycle that I pray for my safety and health.  I run really early in the morning and often my routes are not well-lit.  I worry about tripping over a leaf-covered sidewalk crack or a half eaten nut from a squirrel.  Then there's the stomach flu and runny noses going around.  My kids are now routinely doused in hand sanitizer.  Yes, I'm that selfish.

Despite all the worry, I can't wait for M-day.  I feel prepared and strong.  I feel ready to take on my next 26.2 miles.  I've signed up to run with the 4:30 pace group.  All of my training runs for the past 3 weeks have been under 10:00 min/mile.  My 22-miler (3 weeks ago) was done at a 9:56/mile pace.  Of course that doesn't include water/GU breaks (and I took 3). My last speed work out, I did 10 Yasso 800's with an average time of 4:15.  I'm not sure how that will all work out on race day, but it's worth a shot.  If I'm not feeling it on race day, I'll drop back.  While it would be nice to have a group to run with, I have the confidence to run the race by myself.

Of course the real issue of concern, is the wardrobe.  I absolutely despise running with a belt (although I've done it many times before). So that means I have to run in my SkirtSport running skirt.  It's taken me on all my long runs, so I know it will do fine.  With predicted temps of  mid-40's in the morning, mid-60's in the afternoon, I don't think it would be smart to wear long sleeves.  Of course that's what I had planned (bright yellow/green so hubby could find me!). So, I'm back to the drawing board.  My new shoes are dark gray/green, and if you read my marathon recap last time, you know I'm all about being matchy-matchy.  Well, I'm not as anal this time around and honestly, I just want to be comfortable.  You can be assured that my hair ribbon/bow will match, though!

So this week I will tie up a few loose ends.  I need to re-calibrate my Garmin, figure out my wardrobe issues, fine tune my playlist, and try to relax.  The whole family is coming with me to Columbus, which is sure to add a little extra stress, but maybe more cheers and smiles at the finish line.  We'll see if they make it that long!  Asking a 5 year old and 3 year old to do anything for 4 1/2 hours, especially wait around outside, is asking a lot!   In any case, I'm ready to get this show on the road!  Until next time ~ Embrace Your Pace and Run Happy ~                                                                                                                                                                                                                                  

Thursday, September 2, 2010

3 Things Thursday

1 - Yes, I'm the worst blogger.  Between my job, my kids and running....My schedule is full!
  • Although I like my job, my "reporting manager" is a bit  Passive Aggressive and it drives me crazy.  I suppose I'll survive...I have to!
  • My oldest started Kindergarten.  I'm so excited/scared/nervous for him.  I just want him to succeed.  My mother-in-law once said..."you don't hurt until your kid hurts".  Although her and I don't always see eye-to-eye, this is a true statement.  Secondly, my 3 year old starts preschool next week.  My little Caroline is my snuggle-bug and heart and soul.  She's always so sad to see me go.  I don't want to leave her screaming and crying every day.  My heart can't take it.  Watching my 5 year old get on the bus each day is rough enough.
  • I've officially entered my high-mileage weeks.  For me, that's close to 40 miles.  My alarm goes off at 4:55 am on Mondays.  Needless to say, I start and end the week exhausted.
2 - Blisters are not my friend.  Between the new-ish shoes and messing around with my shoe inserts/orthotics, my feet are a mess.  I've only ever had 1 blister before and that was after 20-miles in the rain.  I'm so over it.  Not only that, but my calf issues are still abound and now my left hamstring is tight.  Once again...I'm so over it.

3 -  My previous 2 long runs (17 and 18 miles) went pretty well.  I only have 2 20-milers left before M-Day.  This is a cut-back week (good thing for my blisters and aching legs), but I'm really just anxious to get the big ones out of the way.  October 17th can't come soon enough!



On a brighter note....college football is back.  I'll be cheering on my Ohio State Buckeyes tonight!!  Go Bucks!!  Until next (time) ~ Embrace your Pace and Run Happy ~

Monday, August 16, 2010

Week 7 - The Little Engine that Could

Week 7 down, 9 more to go! I feel like that little old engine, from children's books, that just kept plugging away.  I’m not really sure what is going on, but I feel fantastic! I really hate to jinx myself, but I really do feel great. Perhaps it was because it was a “step-back” week and my long run was only 11 miles this week? The weather has been hideously hot and humid, so I can’t “blame” it on cooler temps. I’ve been stretching and rolling out my calves regularly. I still have some major knots in my calves, but at least they’re not painful anymore. Whatever the cause, I hope it continues, because October 17th is a long way away (in marathon-training terms).


Here’s the craziest part. Thursday I headed over to the local HS track to calibrate my new watch and footpod. This is a big sacrifice, because it means leaving my beloved Dingo at home. Well, it’s been too hot for him anyway and if the truth be known….he’s been driving me crazy. He wants to stop and pee all.the.time. I know it’s a stall tactic and I also know it’s likely a sign that he’s not enjoying himself. We got in about 10 miles together previous in the week, so it’s not like he hadn’t gotten any exercise that week. So anyway, with the Dingo at home, I headed to the track. I calibrated my watch just fine and as I was getting ready to leave, I decided I might just try a mini-speed workout. I only had 4 miles on the schedule that day, so I figured I could manage it no matter what. Of course being the speed workout-loathing- runner that I am, I know nothing about speed workouts! And then the Yasso 800’s came to me. And then came the dilemma in my mind. I’m going to be running at least the last half of the marathon by myself (my friend’s husband is running the half), so I’ve decided I want to join a pace group. The only problem with that is that for slow folks like me, they only offer a 4:30 and 5:00 hour pace group. I completed my first marathon in just under 5:00 hours. While I’m not competitive, I’d like to at least not be slower than that time! But with my injury status, I know that I very well could be slower than 5:00 hours. I also know that if I’m feeling good and comfortable with the 5:00 hour pace group, I may not want to leave them! For the sake of training and the Yasso 800’s, I decided to try for a 4:30 split. My first split was 3:58. My second split was 3:54. Sweet! And then the HS soccer team starting pouring into the stadium and sat watching me, in silence. That was my cue to leave! I am way too self-conscious to have HS boys watching me. I could only imagine them saying to one another "did you even know that someone with such a big ass could run?"
I got home and started researching Yasso 800’s and found out that ideally, you should be able to work up to and complete ten 800’s at your desired pace to accurately predict your marathon finishing time. You should also start about 7 weeks out from your marathon. Man, was this a sign or what? So without much hesitation, I decided I would give it a try. Going to the track was a nice change of pace, so to speak. Now to just get there BEFORE the soccer team! And so begins my relationship with speedwork. I have a pretty good record of long-term relationships (hubby and I will celebrate our 9th wedding anniversary this Wednesday, 17 years since we started dating..yikes!). We’ll see how it goes.


This weekend I have 17miles on the schedule and am pumped! My running buddy will be back this weekend and the humidity is suppose to decline. I can hope at least! Until next week ~ Embrace Your Pace and Run Happy ~

PS - Check out the link to Powerbar.com to sign up to receive your free sample of their new Energy Gel Blasts. I'm always in search of a quick, tasty and most importantly easy on the tummy source of nutrition on the go.  Full review to come!

Monday, August 9, 2010

Week 6 - Feelin' better

The respite from the hot and humid weather did not last long.  My weekday runs ended up being pretty warm, but I felt pretty good overall.  My left leg soreness slowly dissapated and was completely gone by my run on Thursday.  My Monday and Thursday runs both increased by one mile, as did my long run.  I ended up with just over 28 miles for the week.

 I was most relieved that the 15-miler on Saturday went well.  I started on my own, running about 4 miles to the running group.  There I met up with a friend who was gracious enough to slow down for me, and we did another 5 miles.  Thank goodness she was with me because the other members of the group were speedy and there were lots of turns on the route!  I would have ended up lost for sure!  At 7:00am we met up with the rest of the running group and I ran with yet another friend.  She's exactly my speed and we get along great!  I only had 6 miles to do though, and she needed to do 10.  Her race is exactly one month before mine, so we're on slightly different schedules.  On my way back to the running store, I ran with a mother who had come to the group for the first time.  She had her 2 girls (ages 2 years and 9 months) with her, in the jogging stroller.    Let me tell you, she gets the gold medal for the day!  Although the morning had started off nice and cool, when the sun came up, it got hot fast.  And as those of you that have ever pushed 2 kids in a jogging stroller know, those suckers are heavy!  About 5 minutes into our jog back to the store, the 9 month old starts screaming.  And so begins the cheerios/goldfish/puffs dance.  And then the singing.  And finally she just had to stop and nurse her baby.  On the side of the road.  I felt bad for her, but it was rather awkward, so I went ahead and finished the run by myself.  Now, I am all for nursing your babies...I mean I nursed my sweet little Caroline for 15 months!  This mother was essentially a stranger though and I thought it would likely be more awkard for her, if I had just sat there and watched.  Perhaps that was poor running-etiquitte on my part?  In any case, she was super nice about it all and had the patience of a saint!  I hope she comes back (although she was pretty slow with the jogging stroller and ended up running alone 80% of the time). 

As for my calves...well, they're marginally better.  I think using the slant board throughout the day has helped, as has The Stick massages.  Yoga-Fridays have been a good thing too.  It's still hard for me to call that a workout though (although my Jillian Michaels yoga DVD definitely makes you work up a sweat).  I like having "fresh legs" for the long runs, so this routine will stand.

As for next week.  Weekday mileage stays the same and it's a step-back week for the long run.  Yahoo!  I definitely like the step-back weeks mentally, if not physically! Until next week ~ Embrace Your Pace and Run Happy ~

Thursday, August 5, 2010

3 Things Thursday!

Surprise!  Mid-week (non weekly-recap) post!  Just 3 quick things that have come up over the past few days. 

1.  I love Garmin's customer service.  I mailed my watch with a torn strap (and subsequently broken start/stop button thanks to an attempt at gluing the strap back together....yeah....super glue rolls) back to them last Tuesday and received a completely brand new one in the mail yesterday!  G Money and I will be un-stoppable now!  I felt so naked running without her on my wrist!

2.  I took advantage of Runningskirt.com's sale back in June.  Unfortunately, I haven't been happy with their skirt.  It seems cheaply made (in comparison to my skirtsport.com one) and the exterior pockets are useless.  I tried putting my phone in the pocket and it sagged down to my thighs.  Not a good look!  It is super-comfy though...if you don't mind hiking up your skirt every 5 minutes.  Perhaps it's too big?  I  was in between sizes, so opted to go bigger.  Oops.  This skirt will remain a 0-5 mile run skirt.  I don't think I could stand it any longer than that.  Such a bummer!  It's pretty cute!

3.  Custom orthotics are in my future!  I went back to the podiatrist today and since my pain had only improved ~50%, he thought we might as well try the custom orthotics.  I had to take my kids with me to the appointment.  They were complete angels!  It helped that they had me hoisted up to eye level in a chair and the doctor was "playing" with plaster.  That's big fun for little kids!  I just hope they're as much "fun" to run with.

Well, that's it for now.  15 miles on deck for Saturday morning.  Bring it on!!

Monday, August 2, 2010

Week 5 - My calves will be the end of me!

Week 5 started off to a much better start, thanks to cooler temps and lower humidity.  Such a relief!!  I even completed both of my "assigned tasks" from last week.  More to come on that later, though.  My weekday mileage stayed the same, with a 2 mile increase of the long run on Saturday.  I felt good through the week.  My calves didn't bother me.  I've been using The Stick every night and although I can still feel some knots in my calves, they're no longer painful.  I shipped my Garmin back to the factory for some rehab on Tuesday.  I feel so naked, running with out it!

Thursday I had my appointment with the podiatrist.  I really just wanted to get my toenails checked out and see if there was anything I could do to stop them from falling off during each training cycle.  Turns out I'm "slightly flat footed" (doctors words, not mine), in which I've been wearing a neutral/stability shoe.  My 2nd metatarsal has taken on extra pressure because of it, causing the bone to thicken (he took 3 x-rays), and the nerves to become agitated and basically hurt!  My calves are also very tight (go figure....) which causes me to draw up my toes in my shoe and my toenails start to take on pressure.  Thus, I lose toenails.  In addition, my right leg is longer than my left.  Hmm...is that why my left hip and knee bother me after long runs??  So after rigging my current insoles to allow for my toe issues and inserting a heel lift in my left shoe...I'm all set.  The best part however, came when he insulted my shoe choice.  And I quote...."I suggest you start choosing more mature shoes", in reference to my adored-Sperrys. Whatever.  I wore my running shoes/insoles/heel lift that whole day and had no ill-effects on Friday..

Saturday morning, 5:00am rolls around and I get out of bed to do my 14-mile long run.  We were leaving for an overnight trip to Columbus with the kids and my in-laws at 8:30am, so I had to get out there early to get it done.  The dingo accompanied me for the first loop (8 miles).  About 2 miles in, the rear, outer-aspect of my left hamstring (where it inserts behind the knee) starts getting tight.  I figure the tightness will go away, so I just keep running.  All of the sudden I feel a huge cramp, move across the back of my leg (just above my knee) and up the back of my leg.  I walked a few feet, stretched, and then kept running.  It remained pretty tight the rest of the time, but the intense cramping subsided.  I made it around the first 8 mile loop, dropped the dingo off at the house, used the potty and then set off for the second 6-mile loop.  I took a GU at mile 5 and some Shot Bloks at mile 9.  It was a great morning for a run.  It rained very lightly a few times in the beginning, so as the sun was rising, a beautiful rainbow formed over head.  I got my inhaler Rx refilled and used it correctly (thanks to advice from my PharmD running friend/partner) before the run, and my lungs felt great.  My left leg/hamstrings were definitely not happy with me by the end of the run, but it wasn't anything I couldn't push through.  I stretched my legs really good afterwards and then iced my left hamstring.  I wore my Zensah calf compression sleeves in the car on the way to Columbus and then slept in them that night.  Unfortunately, walking around a museum all day with a 30+ pound 3 year old on your hip doesn't necessarily help matters.  I woke up Sunday morning and my entire left leg was achy.  Whoops...perhaps I shouldn't have done my entire run with the heel lift in for the first time.  The thing is pretty tiny though.  I never thought it would make that much of a difference.  Lesson learned!  There would be no rest for the weary (although my kids did sleep in until 9:30 am for the first time EVER) as we were spending the day at the zoo.  Nothing a little ibuprofen and some quality time with The Stick couldn't help with! 

All in all, it was a great week.  I was glad to get in some good runs.  I was second-guessing myself and my ability to run this marathon.  Being in the city where the marathon will be run and seeing the finish line area, etc gave me new excitement.  11 more weeks to go, baby!  Until next week ~ Embrace Your Pace and Run Happy ~