Week 11 - Day 2 - 20 Miles

"Learn to run when feeling the pain: then push harder." - William Sigei, Kenyan long-distance runner who in 1994 set a new world record over 10,000 meters in Oslo with 26:52.23 minutes.

This week I lost my super power.

Losing one's super power, even if only temporarily, causes one to evaluate the overall importance of having one. I learned it is QUITE important to me. After the painful reality of Tuesday, I went into a tailspin. I iced 3 times a day, took ibuprofen on the clock, elevated all day while working, heat padded before bed, took copious amounts of fish oil, had my gait and feet analyzed (supinator, high arch/right foot dominant) which led to spending a staggering sum on new Brooks running shoes, a knee brace, shoe inserts molded to my feet, a silly (but useful) product called "The Stick" to aid in muscle recovery and best of all, was informed by the running shoe queen that the shoes I have been running on for 1.5 years were ALL wrong for me. Yet after all that I discovered the hardest part of all was skipping two 4 mile runs.

I had long talks with Justin, of which I am sure he became quite familiar with, about all the possible causes for my distressed left knee, I also talked to my Dad and my best friend (and running inspiration), Maria. All reminded me that this is just my first marathon, that this is the first step on the road to becoming a seasoned runner. There is a reason nobody masters the marathon on the first go (unless you are truly talented), there is A LOT that can go wrong! Our body's are not meant for this stress, in fact we have evolved "out" of distance running.

After this challenging 4 day break, last night at 1:30 am Justin and I selected our 20 mile route. We decided on a route that traversed the East side of Portland. The route is almost completely on sidewalks broken up by stop lights and is quite level with only 1 nasty hill.

We spent last night going out for pasta then visiting with our very good friends enjoying cider, beer and nachos. The weather was slated in the low 70's so we didn't feel inclined to get an early start. We ate oatlmeal, drank protein shakes, digested, loaded up our belts with gooey energy crap, filled our canteens with goo-water, stopped at Fred Myer and picked up more goo-crap, went back a second time for snazzy Nike wrist and head bands and headed East. The run began at 11:45 am just around the corner from my yoga studio (which I miss desperately).

Within the first .5 mile the stabbing pain returned to my left knee-cap. I was deflated but determined to keep moving. It lingered through the 2nd mile and then disappeared completely for the remainder of the run. Happy day!!! The rest of the run was relatively easy and pleasant. As we approached the end I realized that I still had something in me. I felt that I could have run farther, perhaps even 6.2 miles farther. This thought really pumped me up but I did have the good sense to STOP, stretch and start recovering....

...which I am doing now;

heat padding the knee,

reflecting

and feeling like a superhero :)