OKC Memorial Marathon

marathon monday: the hallelujah chorus

March 9, 2015

Happy Monday!! Happy Marathon Monday to those among us training for April. Today we begin week 12 according to Hal Higdon, and I am ecstatic. Why? Not only because we are now two-thirds of the way through the whole shebang, but also for the following three fabulous reasons. I am basically singing the Hallelujah chorus!

Hallelujah #1: Oklahoma has finally broken loose from wintertime. It’s true. After so many months of ice and snow and sub-freezing air, last week we endured the final days of yuck. Since Thursday afternoon we’ve been enjoying warm, blue skies, and I could not be happier. Sure, there may still be a frosty morning here and there, but nothing that should impact running. The next six weeks should boast reliable weather for all sorts of outdoor activity, and this is magical.

Hallelujah #2: On Friday I logged my first 17 mile run of the season, and it felt GREAT. Not okay, not endurable, not pretty good. It felt really amazing. My pace was decent and I wasn’t sucking air at all; nor did I need more than two quick water breaks. This is wonderful news, because last year when Carrie and I first ran twice around Lake Hefner, I had homicidal thoughts and ended the day in a fetal position. It was pretty miserable. But this time after running (at a different track though) I immediately went grocery shopping, drove home to do some laundry and easy animal chores, then showered and went out on the town with my daughter and her boyfriend. My energy was through the roof! Also, I haven’t been sore at all this weekend. Super encouraging. I’m already looking forward to the Friday after next when I get to grab 19, and all of this convinces me that a certain very special Sunday in April will be magical.

Hallelujah #3: New shoes!! Also on Friday, after that long run, Handsome and our oldest conspired to get me out of the house while the farm filled up with friends and decorations for a little surprise birthday party (I’m 41 now, woohoo!!). While out on the town (see above), I tried on a bunch of different colorful running shoes and finally settled on a pair of dark gray Sauconys with hot pink edges. Bonus: They were on sale! The laces are highly elasticized, and this makes me weirdly happy. The shoes feel like really tight, bouncy marshmallows on my feet. I wore them to run three recovery miles Saturday morning and it was delightful, even though I do need to tighten up the toes area a little. My good ol’ reliable (but really worn out) Brooks didn’t even pout; they just sat back in the corner, getting caught up on reading, asking the parrot to make lots of fresh coffee, which he did without complaint. Having new shoes for the last leg of marathon training is magical. Thanks babe!!

I was so happy to feel the sun on my arms and actually see my shadow!

So much magic, right? So many reasons to sing the Hallelujah chorus. Running in the sunshine without a million layers of warm clothes, not slipping downhill on ice, knowing I have plenty of time to break in my super cute new shoes before the race, and most of all… Feeling strong and brimming with energy for those deeply excavating runs. The meditative ones. All of it is just blissful. I am a very happy (but slightly older) girl eager to get outside for more.

Are you training for a race this spring? How’s it going? What shoes do you love best?

Happy Monday!!
XOXOXOXO

marathon monday: snow at the halfway point

February 23, 2015

Monday has rolled around once more, this time bringing along a thick, swirling snowstorm and frigid temperatures. Oklahoma is so beautiful beneath a blanket of new snow, and I am crazy for the muffled quiet. It’s rare and deeply calming. And yes, we know that much of the country, not to mention our neighbors to the Canadian north (Hi Heather!), have been dealing with weather worse than this for a long time, but the Midwest has behaved so springlike since the holidays that this true snowstorm is a surprise. A troublesome but magical surprise.

Romulus, King of the Snow. Emperor of Ice. Purveyor of the Cold.

Also because it’s Monday, my mind is on the upcoming marathon and how training is going. Today begins the tenth week of the program I’ve been (mostly) following, which is just past the halfway point. Wait, what? Already we are halfway there? Life has been so busy otherwise that I’m kind of shocked.

Surprised by snow. Shocked to see that we are halfway to the race. These are good feelings.

Except…

Except that the snow and bitter cold make running impossible, which is frustrating because I’ve really hit an endurance stride here lately. The long runs feel amazing both mentally and physically. I’m to that familiar point where the long run endorphins (they are unique) put me in an amazing mood! Afterwards I feel refreshed, depleted in the best way, and strong. There’s a 17 mile run on the planner for this coming week, and just thinking about it makes me giddy. Nervous, but happy. My legs get bouncy. Of course there’s no telling yet how the weather will cooperate, so we’ll just have to wait and see.

The elliptical machine is great but it doesn’t feel at all the same as running; nor does it really prepare me for the long runs. It’s better than nothing for staying warm and active, though, so I grab time there anytime temperatures or wind chills are below 29 degrees or when my trail is iced or snowed over, which was certainly the case today! Probably tomorrow too. We’ll see after that.

The guineas drop black and white dotted feathers all over the farm. This morning in the snowy gloom, these errant feathers are all I could see on the ground. An hour later they were deeply buried in cold drifts. Now as I type, the sun is out and reflecting brilliantly on all the snow, blinding and gorgeous.

Everything will work out great, of course. Far more serious runners than me are navigating much steeper challenges than this and getting ready. Having fun, running faster all the time, logging miles no matter what. Plus, a super sweet rumor is floating around that Handsome might be shopping for a treadmill.

So I’ve got that going for me. (wink)

‘CAUSE EVERYTHING IS AWESOOOOOOME!!!*
XOXOXO

*Raise your hand if you watched the Oscars Sunday night and the Lego song has been stuck in your head ever since. Yay! That’s not even sarcastic. I kind of love it. The End.

marathon monday: 2015 training starts fresh

December 22, 2014

I’m a little surprised. I’d been assuming that training for the 2015 Oklahoma City Memorial Marathon would start early January, just after the holiday revelry subsides, but no. I’m following the Hal Higdon “Intermediate I” program, which is 18 weeks long. Counting backwards from April 26th of next year, I will actually run my first training mile today. And I’m really excited about it! For the last few months, running has taken a back seat to a pretty hectic and unpredictable daily life, which is fine. Fitness is supposed to be a tool for a happy, balanced life, after all, not my main goal. But returning to some structure and gradually increasing challenges will be wonderful. Refreshing both mentally and physically.

My very good friend & book club buddy Steph snapped this photo of me around mile 22 of last year's OKCM Marathon. I will never forget this feeling! xoxo — My very good friend & book club buddy Steph snapped this photo of me around mile 22 of last year’s OKC Marathon. I will never forget this feeling! xoxo Click on the photo for that article!

Are you interested in running any of the events in OKC? Click right here for pricing and details. Take note that if you register by New Year’s Eve you enjoy the best price break. I feel extra lucky because as a thank you for participating in the marathon committee’s focus group, I get to register for half price of that. Nice! More money to drop in my new-shoes fund. My Brooks situation is getting kind of desperate.

So, Hal Higdon. This is the same training program that got me to my first half marathon in 2013 and then my first full last April. It’s simple, effective, and slightly famous. I felt more than ready by the end of each 18-week stretch, and it also allowed me some flexibility on weird weeks. Happy, balanced life first, right? Well, happy, balanced life first with a heavy focus on marathon readiness. The two are simpatico. Totally. The more I run, the better life is.

Is this true for you? That the more you run, the better life is? It’s a wonderful addiction.

With only a few days before Christmas weekend, I am really glad to have my shopping (mostly) done. I’m glad to have time to spend on the trails this week, burning off some tension and tapping into whatever stamina I have left from such a paltry autumn of low mileage. Reevaluate my fitness and sweet talk a few more dozen miles out of my cute, filthy, moth-eaten little Brooks. The shoes that used to be turquoise and white but now are spray-painted black.

With the onset of training season, my Marathon Monday posts will be more consistent, too. Are you training for anything, or are you on the fence about starting? Is there anything you’re interested in reading about? I have some fun, different ideas for this section of my blog for the coming months, so please stay tuned. Diet, shoes and clothes, music, weight loss, literature, and (of course) the philosophy of running. There’s so much to talk about!

For week one, here is my easy peasy running schedule, slightly modified to accommodate the holiday:
Monday: 3 miles
Tuesday: 7 miles
Wednesday:3 miles
Thursday: Merry Christmas! Rest Day. Family time. xoxo
Friday: 8 miles
Saturday: 3 miles
Sunday: cross train (yoga, elliptical, or strength)

Thanks as always for visiting me here! If you’re working on a running goal I’d love love love to hear all about it. And please enjoy the next few days of Christmas prep. Let it be joyful, ok?

Run for Your Life
XOXOXOXO

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