A commendable demonstration of maturity and determination

My apologies for the lapse in updates. Trust that I have been having lots of fun since my last post. Bachelorette parties, weddings, barbecues, woodland vacations, birthday parties, the return of the rain, and reading. And still almost-daily running.

The last two weeks have been a satisfying opportunity to test my willingness to keep up with TNT's running schedule, despite the aforementioned other very important priorities. Over the last two weeks, I've gone to the following lengths to keep running:

• Running in Lakewood - This may seem like small potatoes, but given that there was a shooting nearby the week prior and that there were many more fun activities to distract me while there for the Mitchell-Sparkman wedding, this accomplishment was actually huge french fries.
  


• Running the Day After - It is social/celebration city up in here lately. I have been staying up past my bedtime, dancing like a 6-year-old on Redbull (throwing some elbows, if you will), filling my skin and bones with decadently salty, fatty party foods, and nursing my favorite adult beverages. Yet, with a commendable demonstration of maturity and determination, I still run it like it's hot the next day. Fo shizzle.
  


• Running on Staycation - Our exclusive vacation club (Pantiiiiiies!!!!) decided to stay-cation this year--an affordable and creative alternative to our usual high-rolling luxury vacation. We rented a charming cabin near Mount Rainier National Park and supported our vacation habit almost entirely with board games, a cooler of cheap beer, great conversation, and a commitment to mentally blocking all responsibility for the weekend. I blocked all responsibility except for that to my training. I was a nerd and brought running to the staycation. And although the club should have been firmly against such responsibility, they were actually very supportive. Mike ran with me one day and Nicole & Sarah-Jane ran with me another. It made me feel very loved and supported to have them join in my endeavor for the weekend (thanks guys!!!).
  


• Running in the Rain - It finally happened. It rained again, and I had to run in it. I feel the power of being a real runner growing in me now as I recount the exhibition of talent and coolness. Running in the rain is hard core, man.... In all honesty though, I ran no more than 5 minutes in a refreshing and well-timed mist. But I was prepared for and committed to running in the worst. When I set out on that partly sunny trek, I knew I was walking into a potential grade 1 storm. And that mental attitude is an achievement in itself. Baby steps. And next thing you know, I'm awesome. Woo!

And now I will close with a very important FAQ: It seems everyone wants to know how far and how often I've been running.

• How often: If you read my blog enough (*ahem*), you know that I run almost-daily. In case that's not concrete enough for all of you, I shall break it down: I run 5 days a week, taking Monday and Friday off to rest my marathon muscles.
  


• How far: I actually don't blame anyone for asking this. It's a very normal question. And I love that my answer is basically that I don't really know.
  
  TNT is focused on the duration of the run, not the distance. They started us at 30 minutes 5 days a week. Right now we're up to 40 minutes 3 days a week (the normal run), 75 minutes once a week (the long run), and 30 minutes once a week (the short run). My pace is about 10 minutes per mile, so I'm running about 4 miles on normal days and 7.5 miles on long days.
  
  The time for each long run changes each week - it will increase and decrease in a way that lets us build and heal our marathon muscles in perfect preparation for race day. Most runners don't actually run the full marathon distance during training, not until race day that is. My longest pre-marathon run is scheduled for Saturday 9/12, when I'm set to run 270 minutes. Ouch. (Something tells me they expect my pace to slow quite a bit that day.)

Until next time, fellow fun-lovers, much love and respect to you. Peace out!

Running Hills to Boost Fun

Week three is long gone and I'm halfway through week 4. Time flies when you're having fun.

Over the last two weekends, at various social gatherings (ouw ouw!!), several of you have commended the determination and training that must go into preparing to run a marathon. Your comments and questions have really gone to my head--I should say I feel like a pretty badass running machine.

And although I thank you for the support, I must take this time to iterate that I am not a badass running machine. Sure, I can hide behind my blog and sound like a real racer, or dress up in my custom fit running shoes and hardcore running clothes and look like a marathon woman, but in person, while running, I'm pretty pathetic. Legs jarring, feet scuffing along, hardly clearing the ground, my kitchen timer tied to my shoes in lieu of a stopwatch, face exuding sweaty discomfort--I'm less than an inspiring image.

But somehow, my perception of my running experience is always that I am having fun.

At our last practice (along the beautiful Kirkland waterfront), the TNT coaches encouraged us to start adding hills to our workouts. At 8 am on a Saturday, this does not sound necessary. And at 5 pm on a Tuesday, it still does not sound necessary. And then Fitness Guru/Teacher/Master Erin Thekkedom enlightened me. She helped me understand that hills help make the flat parts easier.

If you can run a hill, you can run a faster flat. The hill adds natural resistance to the original running motion. When you remove the resistance, the original motion seems easier, either because the hill strengthens the running muscles or because it simply provides a beneficially painful contrast to the following flats.

Subjecting myself to hills means I'll enjoy the flats more. If I push through the hills, I'll have more fun on the flats. If I work hard a little, I'll have a lot more fun.

So I've added a hill to every day since. I'll let you know next week how much more fun the flats have become.

And perhaps this marathon training (and fundraising--yes, I'm still asking for donations!) experience is my present life's metaphorical hill. I'm adding to my life the resistance of almost-daily runs, dietary changes, constantly soliciting donations, weekly blogs (holla!), and weekly team practices. And I'm honestly having fun. By training to enjoy life with this much resistance, I'm training to automatically experience more fun on the flats, in the everyday life.

The benefits of running in LalaLand

I've been marathon-bound for just over two weeks now. Two weeks with Team in Training has transformed me. I've been baptized in sweat and pavement, reborn as Hardcore Runner, Labor Rights Activist, Hilarious Autobiojournalist, Outdoor Photojournalist, Motivational Typer, Footwear Guru, Nature Enthusiast, Mega Philanthropist. To the max. For reals. Over night.

I exaggerate. But in the quiet of my almost-daily runs, these are the fun self-indulgent fantasies with which I entertain me. Such fun this daydreaming is.

Here are some benefits of daydreaming, particularly of the while-running-almost-daily brand:

1. a.) Being forced (by the necessary avoidance of the looming boredom that would, if given the chance, overwhelm my body's physical ability to run at all) to watch my mind wander down imaginative thoughtful trails, and
   b.) Allowing myself the time to notice and enjoy what my mind finds along its way.
   In other words, spending time in my imagination, uninterrupted by multitasking or email.
   


2. The meditative practice of acknowledging the surprise cognitive appearance of a stressor but still allowing myself to choose not to solve the stressor at the moment it comes to mind. I enjoy seeing myself learn to just breath and run, and accept that stressors will exist whether I run or not. I am learning that I may as well enjoy my run.
   
   
3. The rejuvenating affects of creative and imaginative thought. Given the freedom of time, peace, and distance from a computer that almost-daily running affords, I've come to recognize how creative, and even childlike, my thoughts are. Childlike. Younger. My brain feels younger after spending time in LalaLand.
   
   
4. The deepened appreciation for relationships that comes from spending extended time thinking about them. Before I venture into LalaLand, I usually spend some time thinking about Mike, the Baylys, the soon-to-be Spatchellmans and Johnsons, my family. And I always discover another reason to love them in the process.

Some other fun non-running things that I am appreciating this week:

1. The wildflowers around the pond in my neighborhood, Issaquah Highlands


2. The wooded running trails through my neighborhood


3. The SUNSHINE!!! (Not a single day run in the rain so far)


4. Spandex (or Compression Running Tights for the other pros out there). I've crossed the line from afraid of it to loving it. Oh - and my running skirt too--so cute


5. Eating lots of carbs

And I owe the motivation to run almost-daily to all of the people who have been supportive already. Your overnight support has fueled my overnight enthusiasm. Thank you for your donations, blog visits, emails, and conversations. Thank you. I am running for you--together, we will have more fun!!