Christmas Re-cap

I’m glad it’s over. Don’t get me wrong, I loved Christmas this year but I was exhausted. So exhausted that I slept for 12+ hours on Saturday. I passed out at 10:30pm Saturday evening and woke up at 11:00am the next morning. I haven’t done this in a while.

Christmas Eve was spent at my parents’ house with over 30 family members and 4 dogs (Side note: I am the oldest of 20 grandchildren on my mother’s side. 10 boys and 10 girls, the youngest being 1 year old). Every year my mother’s side of the family seems to grow, with both people and animals. This year one of my aunt’s decided to give my Nana and my mother a framed picture of me. It was an official MCM photo of me running by Capitol Hill and trying my best to smile. My husband and my siblings joked that I reminded them of Michelle Obama in the picture because my necked looked “jacked”. I explained that I was straining it to keep my head up and back straight at mile 18 haha. My aunt showed the whole family my picture and said “We must celebrate our first marathon runner in the family”. I was truly touched and flattered. I spent the holiday eating, drinking and talking running. I think I may have even convinced some cousins to take up running or at least give it a try. My mother even wants a treadmill now.

Christmas Day, I gave my husband his special gift, the Garmin Forerunner 405. He loved it. It was just what he wanted. He hasn’t used it yet but when he does, I will be sure to blog about his review. I wish I could use it and review it myself but I’m on run-rest for now. After our gift exchange, we headed up to my in-laws in Connecticut for a traditional German Christmas dinner. We stayed up late into the night enjoying quality time with family and friends. It was a wonderful Christmas.

I must admit that I feel like a fat slob after this long weekend. I didn’t do much in terms of exercise. I lacked serious motivation. It was so much easier when I was able to run. I would just lace up my shoes and head out the door. Now, I have to go to the gym to do anything somewhat productive. Today I was back at the gym getting in my elliptical/weight/swim/pool running workout. I always finish it up with a relaxing 10-15 minutes in the sauna. It’s a nice reward for a good workout. I’m trying to look forward to another run-less week.

Pool Running

My PT told me last night that I have to lay off the running for a little while because my knee is still tightening up at the 15-20 minute mark. She said I can do pretty much everything else but run (since this is the only exercise that seems to bother my knee). Last night, I worked out on the elliptical machine for 20 mins, stretched for 15 mins and then into the pool I went for 30 mins. I tried something new in the pool. I had read about and watched on television injured athletes using the pool to help them stay fit while trying to heal properly. I had seen aquatic treadmills and how they helped injured runners. Since my pool does not have one of these nifty treadmills in it, I thought “why don’t I just try running laps in the pool?”. My pool is 24 meters long so I figured a few times running back and forth would be good. After I swam a couple of laps, I took my goggles off and proceeded to run to the other end of the pool. At first I felt like I wasn’t going anywhere. The resistance from the water is pretty strong. I also started in the deeper end of the pool which made it harder. Once I got the hang of it, I began to feel the workout. It was pretty neat. I barely felt any impact on my knee but I could feel the muscles in my legs burn as I ran laps. My arms got an amazing workout because I had to really pump them through the water. I made sure to really use my arms in these runs because I knew the water resistance would make them work. I noticed how much more I was focusing on my posture. My running posture is terrible. I always try to relax my shoulders and keep my back straight but then I forget and before I know it, I’m hunched over, which makes for awful looking race photos! In the pool, I kept my back straight and shoulders relaxed. After a couple of pool running laps, I felt the fatigue which meant my muscles were working. I switched up the pool workout and alternated between swimming and running. I did not have any knee pain (thanks to the lack of pounding). My PT said I can pool run as long as it does not give me pain so I’m definitely going to incorporate pool runs into my workouts. Oh how I love trying something new.


Funny story: A couple of days ago, I was home running on my treadmill (this was before the PT cut me off from running). My cat, Duvel (aka “Duvey” who is named after the Belgian beer), likes to hang around when I’m on the treadmill. He usually lays in front staring up at me with his tail going back and forth slapping the ground. I didn’t realize that he had gotten up during my run and walked to the side of the treadmill. All of a sudden, I heard a couple of “thumps” and then a nail scratching sound and then a “smack”. Then I saw Duvey bolt across the room. The poor kitty had tried to get up on the treadmill with me and didn’t realize it was moving, so off he was thrown into the wall behind me. I think he was shaking up a little after that because he laid far from the treadmill afterwards and began to groom himself. He was cleaning himself up after his nasty fall. In the end, he was completely fine. Cats really do have nine lives…maybe more.


Well I hope everyone has a happy holiday full of good food, good wine and good cheer! I’m off to make some eggplant rolatini and tiramisu cake..yummmm. (I know I don’t look it, but I’m a quarter Italian)

Surreal

I know I ran a marathon (my first) about two months ago but it still feels surreal. A few days ago I went out to happy hour after work and was speaking to my colleague who also happened to be my marathon training partner. I told him about how I still could not believe that I had actually run all 26.2 miles of MCM '09. We reminisced about some of our training runs, like the first time I ran 10 miles (or double digit miles) or the time I ran the actual 13.1 miles just to make sure I would be able to do it for my first half back in March. I said to him "Remember when I could barely run three miles???". He said "I know. You were such a pathetic runner". We both laughed hysterically. I talked about MCM and how amazed I was at how the miles just flew by. I mentioned how I couldn't remember all of the miles but I remember miles 1-2, 6, 8, 11-13.1, 18, 20, and 23-26.2. He ran MCM '09 too so when discussing the miles, he could relate. I talked about all of this with a huge smile on my face.

My running buddy said something very important to me that night. He said that back in March when I told him that I had signed up for MCM, I impressed him. He couldn't believe that I had actually taken that first step on my own. He told me that I should be very proud of my marathon accomplishment. I followed through and reached my goal. He said that running a marathon is something no one could ever take away from me. He's right.

Running a marathon was a dream that I never thought possible for myself. I just couldn't imagine myself being able to do it. It did not seem like it was something in the cards for me. I'm so glad it was. It was a dream that I made my reality. I realized that if you put your mind to something, dreams really do come true. I rode the train home that night thinking of my father's favorite song, Somewhere Over the Rainbow by Isreal Kamakawiwo'ole. Watch and listen to it here.

My yoga instructor always says "The future is not a promise. Live for today. Be in this moment". I love these words. I'm going to try to live in all of my running moments in the new year. I hope there are lots of them.

PS: I ran for 20 minutes pain free this past Saturday :-)

Feeling Intimidated

I recently started going to a different gym. My job requires me to move around a bit so I’m very grateful for NYSC and the passport membership. I love this gym because it’s new, fairly large and has a pool that is always empty. Yesterday, my workout consisted of a 15 min run = 1.5 miles (going easy on the knee and still having pain at the 15 min mark ughhh), 15 min stretching session, 30 mins lifting and 30 mins swimming. During my lifting session, I felt intimidated. The male to female ratio in the weights section was about 10:1. Okay maybe I’m exaggerating but it felt like that. Why do I feel intimidated? I guess I feel like they are all looking at me like “what is this girl doing here” and I don’t like that feeling. I tried to zone out the feeling because I did not want it to affect my workout. Well I was not very good at it. Whenever I hit the gym, I always attempt to do a couple of chin ups. I know the only way I will be able to do more is by practicing. Yesterday, I dilly dallied around the weights section until I finally got the courage to go over to the chin up bar. It’s not that I was afraid of the chin ups; I was afraid of all the meatheads looking at me. I picked the bar that was in the back of the gym so no one could really see me. I pulled myself up three times and then I was done. (Yes I can only do three chin ups, which isn’t much but a couple of months ago I could barely do one on my own. I’m trying to get to four.) I walked back to the locker room, put on my swimsuit and hit the pool. I love the pool because it really helps to clear my head. When I’m in the water and my ears are submerged, all I can hear is my breathing. It’s wonderful. As I was swimming, I thought about my moment in the weight room and laughed to myself. I am so silly sometimes. I shouldn’t be intimidated. I shouldn’t care if they all looked at me and laughed at my 3 chin ups or little weights. I should be proud. Most people can’t even do one chin up. I found myself laughing more about the incident today when discussing it with a friend and how ridiculous it was that it took me a while to get myself to the chin up bar. It’s funny how I think when I’m at the gym. I wonder what guys actually think about. Do they get intimidated when surrounded by a bunch of women on treadmills or ellipticals? What about those few guys who take the Total Body Conditioning class and have to shake their hips with a classroom full of girls? (PS: I always find this hilarious and have to hold myself back from busting out laughing. I know I know it’s mean but come on, it’s funny).

The Running Buddy That Wasn’t

….and then was. Okay so Laminator’s comment about having a dog to run with prompted this blog. Calleigh was supposed to be my running buddy. She was supposed to be the dog that would accompany me on my runs. I would get my miles in and she would get her well needed exercise. I would also have a less hyper and destructive pup. This all never happened until today.

I tried training Calleigh to run with me at a young age but being the Bully that she is, she was too stubborn to run in any direction that wasn’t in the direction of the dog park. She has a better memory than myself sometimes. Rather than spending my precious running time talking to my dog and trying to persuade her to run the course I had planned for us, I opted to leave her home on runs. I accepted that she was just not meant to be a running dog.

That all changed today (well maybe a couple of days ago when Lam posted his comment). The comment got me thinking about how I could make Calleigh my running dog. On our last walk through our new off-leash park, we were walking through some trails and I thought how it would be nice to run through them. BINGO! What if I ran through the park with Calleigh off leash? I know she would follow me so that was not a problem and the park was fairly large enough that after a couple of loops I could probably get in some miles. And so it began.

This morning I ran my first run with my new running buddy. We only had about 20 minutes (since I had to get home and get ready for work) but at least it was something. We headed out at sunrise in the 20 degree weather (although the wind chill made it feel 10 degrees cooler). I was all bundled up and wearing my new Mizunos (love love love them so far). I froze my a** off but was happy to hit the pavement. It was my first time in weeks. Of course, I started off too fast and had to slow myself down. And of course, my garmin could not find it’s satellite (wahhh) so I could not calculate my distance or pace. I ran for 20 minutes and felt good. However, I had to stop because Calleigh found a friend and then when I started up again the knee felt tight. Well, with that, I stretched myself out a little bit and then we headed home. I’m heading to hot yoga tonight to get more stretching and sweating in. Tomorrow morning I will be back in the PT’s office and will let her know about my run. I have been doing my prescribed stretches, electric stimulation, icing the knee and massages. Does tendonitis really take this long to heal or get rid of? It’s starting to get to me. Ughh. The good news: I figured how to run with my dog.

Calleigh after our run

Habits

My running mind started thinking the other day about all the habits running has helped me change from bad to good. I was going to blog about all of them but felt that each one probably deserved its own posting. For now, I will start with SMOKING.

Running helped me to quit. In combination with chewing gum and an anxiety med, I was able to giving up the nasty habit.

I began smoking when I was in high school. Like most teenagers, I did it because I thought it was cool. That coolness quickly turned into a terrible addiction that I would battle with for years. At the time, I didn’t care about the health consequences. I smoked Parliament 100s (the super long cigarettes) in my last year of high school and pretty much all through college. At some points, I was smoking a pack a day. I loved to smoke whenever I was drinking. Alcohol and cigarettes just seemed to go hand in hand. I thought smoking was sexy. I remember a guy once telling me that I looked sooo sexy smoking a cigarette after I had taken a drag. HA I must have looked so TRASHY!!!

After college, I smoked less because I was working. I wanted to make a good impression at my first job so I didn’t smoke during work hours. Instead, I would light up a cigarette when I got home or whenever I went out for happy hour. I also became sick more frequently with all kinds of tonsil/throat infections. I knew I had to give up the dirty habit for health reasons but it was very difficult. Sometime in 2004, I began to hit the gym more often. I also began taking an anxiety medication because I was seriously terrified of my boss (God rest her soul because she dropped dead a couple of years later). I also think my anxiety was a result of the drastic changes in my life- going from college straight to the work force, working 9 hours a day/5 days a week, commuting, missing my college roommates, etc. I was overwhelmed and did not know how to handle it. Little did I know at the time that anxiety meds have helped people quit smoking. I only stayed on the meds for about 6 months because of working out and running. Physical exercise helped me to gain control of my life. I also quit smoking heavily, however I still smoked socially (meaning I only had a cigarette if I drank or was with friends which was a couple of times a week). It was tough to give it up fully but at least at this point, I was no longer as addicted.

The last time I had a cigarette was Christmas Day of last year. In about two and a half weeks I will officially have my 1 year anniversary of quitting smoking. I truly believe that I have not smoked a cigarette this entire year because of running. I embarked on my long distance running journey in January of this year. I was focused and determined in racing the half and full marathon. The urge for a cigarette vanished quickly. I wanted to run far and fast so why would I jeopardize all of my running progress by smoking a cigarette? This is why I quit entirely. I traded cigarettes for a pair of Asics. It was one of the best decisions I have ever made.

There are a million and one reasons to give up smoking. However, it is not easy to quit. I know I smoked because I was bored. Running was my relief from that boredom. Although I was able to run when I did smoke, I did not run as well as I do now. Being a smoke-free runner makes my runs much more enjoyable. I’m no longer gasping for air after running a mile. If you are a smoker and want to quit, try finding something you love to do that will help get rid of your boredom. I know running is not for everyone, but you should give it a try. It worked for me.

Trying New Things

This past week has been the week of trying something new. I love to try something new because it can be nerve-racking and exciting all at the same time. Sometimes having a little bit of anxiety is a good thing. It helps push you to conquer your fears.

As you know, I tried hot yoga and physical therapy this past week. With the yoga, I was nervous because it was my first class and as for the physical therapy, I was afraid of what the Doctor would say about my knee. Both turned out to be wonderful experiences and I am going to back for more.


On Friday, Calleigh (my one and a half year old Bull Terrier) and I tried a new dog park. NYC has certain parks that are designated off-leash areas from the park opening time till 9am. One of these parks is about a mile from my home and we decided to give it a quick 15 min trial. Calleigh is very good off the leash. She doesn’t go far from me and follows me as we walk. However, if she spots a squirrel, off she will run and run circles around the squirrel’s tree while trying to figure out how to climb it herself. Silly Dog. She likes people but LOVES other dogs. As we entered the park, I saw a pack of dogs and a pack of owners. This was very intimidating to Calleigh and I, as all the dogs quickly surrounded Calleigh and all the owners quickly gave me the look of “Who are you?”. As Calleigh’s mommy, she was my first concern and I quickly ran to her rescue to get all the horny boys off of her. They were sniffing all over and I could tell she was scared. Her ears were down and the tail was between the legs. Although the owners didn’t say much to me, they did help break the dogs up. Once we broke from the pack, we went on our way just walking around the park. She sniffed while I browsed. I felt very out of place. Calleigh and I were not part of that dog click and we were outsiders. We needed to be insiders. I left the park feeling happy but a little bit upset. I was happy that we tried something new, Calleigh got her exercise and that she loves me sooo much that when walking around, she always lifts her head up to make sure she does not lose sight of me. It’s great to feel that wanted and needed. I was upset that we were not welcomed as we would have liked to been. I reminded myself that not everyone will like us and that if at first you don’t succeed, try again. With that in mind, we headed back to the park on Saturday. Calleigh was so excited that she sat on the stairs and started yelping at 7am to wake me up and take her to the park. She is my smart little Bully. Off we went for our second try at the dog park and it was a success. We walked into the park and the owners asked me if she was friendly (of course she is…I don’t know who would let a non-friendly dog run around off leash at a park). I didn’t even have to respond because there she was running around with the pack of dogs, her tail wagging and all. Since Calleigh is my little Celebri-doggy (Bullies are not common up here in NYC) many owners began to ask me questions about her and the breed. She quickly made friends with a German Shepherd boy and soon I was chatting it up with all the owners, who turned out to be really nice. We were in. Job well done Cals. We were back there on Sunday and my husband came along. We walked around the park with the pack of owners while our dogs ran free. It was a great day and I’m glad we tried this new park.

I also tried a new pair of running kicks this weekend. I forgot to mention in a previous post that my feet got another gift in the mail last week- my new Mizuno Wave Creation 10s. I actually received these a little while ago, but had ordered a size 9 which turned out to be small. I had to exchange them for the 9.5 which finally arrived last week and look gi-normous. I guess Mizunos run a little bit small. I’m usually a 9 in my Asics and New Balances. This was my first pair of Mizunos. My husband loves the brand and has raved about his own, so I was excited to try them out myself. I hopped on the treadmill for my easy 15 min run and the shoes felt good. I was nervous that they may affect my knee but fortunately the knee did not mind them. The shoes did not have as much cushioning as I was used to in my Asics. I definitely felt the ground (or I should say treadmill) more with my feet. I also noticed the shoes had less support around the ankle than my Asics but that didn’t seem to bother me. I’m not sure if this is good considering the Doctor told me I had weak ankles. I’m going to bring my shoes to him and get his opinion. Anyways, I can’t wait to try these out on the pavement. There is nothing like trying a new pair of running kicks. Isn’t it exciting?

Trying new things is important. As a runner, I have tried new running gear, new running routes, new races, new running fuel, drinks, etc. and they all have provided me with some sort of excitement and anxiety. But once I overcome that anxiety, I am usually pleasantly surprised.

PS- I also tried new Tic Tac Chills today. I tried the exotic cherry kind. I didn’t think I would like them but I almost finished the whole pack at my desk today. It’s a good thing that they are low in calories.

Physical Therapy

I had my first round of physical therapy last night and it was a good thing I wore my workout gear. The doctor had me sit on the bike for a good 10 mins to “warm me up”. I was embarrassed that my 10 mins caused me to break out in a little sweat. I think the machine said I burned around 40 calories haha. Anyways, the appointment went well and I spent about an hour and a half at the office.

Here is what I learned:

1. My Doctor is pretty cute and young. He’s about 6 feet tall, slender, olive complexion, medium brown hair with green eyes and he’s a DOCTOR. I made a mental note to try and find out if he has a girlfriend. I already found out he is not married through conversation (aka my sly investigative skills). You may wonder why a married gal like me is wondering about my Doctor’s relationship status. Well, I don’t think I’ve mentioned this before but I have another job…I’m a matchmaker (or so my friends like to think that). I have matched up friends, some of whom have gotten married, others who are on their way to getting married. People tell me I should charge for this service but since they are my friends, I let it slide. Anyways, Doctor could be a great catch for one or two single friends I have in mind. Thanks to my fabulous friend Lady Google, I found out that Doctor is about 33-34 years old, which makes him the perfect age for my friends. Anyways, I don’t want to jinx this new prospect so I’m going to focus more on the physical therapy stuff and less on the matchmaker stuff for now.

2. My calves are tight and my ankles are weak. Doctor thinks that a surgery I had 10+ years ago on my left ankle could be contributing to the tendonitis in my left knee (he concurred with my physician that it is indeed tendonitis…a result of my marathon training). After walking and jogging for him, he also determined that there is a little bit of an imbalance in the muscle development of my hamstrings and quadriceps. My quads could be stronger.

3. I need to stretch more often and I am not as flexible as I should be. Doctor asked me if I stretched and I responded like a typical runner “Not as much as I should”. Of course I have plenty of time to run but never enough time to stretch. With that, I got my first lesson in stretching. I learned about 5 exercises that stretched my calves, hamstrings and quads. I also learned an exercise to help strengthen the muscles in my feet.

4. Massages are important however they are not the enjoyable kind. While lying on the examination table, Doctor began to massage the outer part of my left thigh. At first I thought to myself that this was nice and maybe part of physical therapy is having your muscles massaged and worked out. Two seconds later, I was clenching my teeth and holding myself back from cursing at him. Doctor actually told me I was allowed to curse at him but I refrained from doing so out loud. He rubbed deep into my thigh and focused on massaging the Iliotibial Band (“ITB”)…it hurt like a b*tch. It was tight and needed to be loosened. Then he began to massage the front part of my calf just below the knee. When he hit certain spots, I could feel it all the way down my shin. I again cursed at him inside my head.

5. My treatment: I am only allowed to do light exercises involving my legs. I have to stretch everyday and do three sets of each of the stretches I learned. Then I must ice my knee for 20 minutes. I also have to visit Doctor twice a week so in addition to teaching me more exercises and giving me the massages from hell, I can be treated with electric stimulation. I was nervous about this after first, but it did not hurt at all and since he had wrapped ice around my knee while the electric machine was doing its thing, it felt fine.

I head back for my second round of treatment on Monday and I’m looking forward to it. I will be sure to provide an update on my knee, as well as the deal with Doctor.

Side note: I had a wonderful day today. I ran for 15 mins on my treadmill at a very comfortable pace. I had a painless run and my knee felt great afterwards. I was tempted to run longer but held back because I do not want to undo any progress my knee has made thus far. Maybe this physical therapy thing is working already?!?!?

Happy Running,
Mishi

Hot Yoga

This past Tuesday I pulled a Two-Day. I don’t normally do Two-Days. However, my husband had bought me (a while back) a trial membership to a local hot yoga studio and I hadn’t used it yet. I figured now would be the perfect opportunity for yoga classes since I’m lying off the running. Also, a colleague of mine reminded me with Thanksgiving coming up, we needed to double down at the gym, and so a Two-Day was well warranted.

In the morning, I hit the gym. I rode the bike until I built up a sweat and then worked with some weights. A trainer had shown me some great exercises to build up my lower and upper back muscles. After work, I headed over to the hot yoga studio for an 8pm session. It wasn’t until I arrived that I found out this session would last for about 2 hours!!! (cutting it close to my bed time)

I have never done yoga before, let alone hot yoga. Let’s just say it was very different and difficult at times. They keep the room at 90 degrees and humid, so you sweat like a pig. It’s great for clearing out your pores, although I would not recommend doing this after a night of boozing. I didn’t really mind the sweat because I tend to measure exercise by the amount I sweat. The more I sweat, the harder and better the workout.

The instructor, or Yogi as they call him, was pretty cool. He noticed my NYRR t-shirt and asked if I was a member. We got chatting about running before the start of the class. Having something in common with the Yogi made my first class of hot yoga less nerve-racking. I also enjoyed that he spoke softly and nicely, unlike the instructors of my boot camp class who like to stand on my thighs as I’m doing wall squats. This was a completely different atmosphere- very soothing and relaxing.

As for the actually yoga, I found the standing poses tough to hold at times. It amazes me how even though I can run for hours on end, my legs could barely hold me in a warrior pose for 20 seconds. The standing poses were also hard because of the amount of sweat that was dripping down my legs and off my face. Being a newbie, I had the bright idea of wearing shorts and so my legs kept slipping and sliding off each other during poses. I made a mental note to wear pants next time. The seated poses were easier and much more enjoyable because as you know, heat rises. Lying on the mats I could feel the “cooler” air even though it was only a couple of degrees cooler. Hey it still felt good and after an hour of doing standing poses in 90 degrees, I needed it. PS- during my standing pose hour, I engaged in the Runner’s Mental Challenge. I seriously wanted to quit but knew I still had another hour to go. I was hot, tired from a long day of work and working out, sweating all over the place, having difficulty holding poses and finding my “still” place. I was tempted to walk out the door but remembered that PAIN is nothing, PRIDE is everything. Plus (no offense to the people who do yoga) I was cocky. I kept looking around the room at all the girls who were bending inside out and stretching their bodies in wacky ways. I thought to myself “They don’t look as strong as me and I bet they can’t run a marathon. I’m going to show them I can run and do this yoga sh*t too”. Hey, I’m a runner, which means I’m competitive. There are some things we can’t help.

My favorite part of the hot yoga class was the cool down at the end haha. The Yogi instructed us to lie flat on our backs and “sink into our mats” aka sleep. Being that it was 10pm, I almost fell asleep. I left class definitely feeling stretched and drenched. Overall, I found hot yoga to be a good stretching exercise and definitely something us runners could use because we all know that we don’t stretch as much as we should. I don’t know if I will go to hot yoga frequently but I think it would be a good idea to take a class once a week. I definitely felt a little sore on Wednesday, which was a great feeling.

Today

Today I treated myself to a much needed mani and pedi. I love treating myself, especially after a run. When I’m unmotivated, I tell myself that if I do this run, then I can get my pedi. Everyone wins in the end, especially my feet. Although I did not run today, my feet are tired from standing on them all day yesterday while cooking a very good Sunday dinner for a table of friends. My delicious menu consisted of Chicken Marsala with Roasted Red Bliss Potatoes and a Waldorf salad. I finished it off with a dessert of Chocolate Whiskey and Beer Cupcakes (aka Irish Car Bomb Cupcakes) topped with a good heaping scoop of Mint Ice Cream (made from the mint that I still have growing in my garden thanks to global warming). The food kept coming and the wine kept flowing. It was a wonderful Sunday spent with very good friends. I was able to pull off this fabulous cupcake dessert thanks to Smitten Kitchen, one of my all time favorite food recipe blogs. (Click here if you want the recipe http://smittenkitchen.com/2009/01/car-bomb-cupcakes/.) Anyways, I spent most of my weekend shopping, cleaning, prepping, cooking and baking (and I guess you could say churning ice cream), so my hands, legs and feet were tired today. They deserved the mani and pedi. Another reason I have grown to love Queens- $19 mani and pedi deals from Monday to Wednesday!

After my visit to the nail salon, I headed over to a nearby shoe salon and treated my feet again. Thirty minutes later and my feet had two new pairs of very sexy and very needed heels. I can’t wait to show them off this week at work. Now I just need to pick out work outfits to go with the shoes.



Later on in the evening, I headed to the train station to pick up my husband. While waiting, he called me to tell me that he had missed the train stop and got off at the station two towns away. I told him to stay at that station and that I was on my way to pick him up. The conversation went like this:

Mishi: “Stay there. I’m driving to the station now”
Husband: “Okay but I’m two towns away. Do you know where the station is?”
Mishi: “Yes. I know exactly where it is.”
Husband: “How do you know?”
Mishi: “Because I have run by it before.”

I smiled to myself after my response to my husband. You see Queens is not that big and I had to find various running routes throughout Queens/Nassau County to get my long runs in for my marathon training. I literally ran all over. So it felt good to know that another benefit to my training/running was now knowing where other train stations are, just in case my husband falls asleep and misses his stop again.

I'm back...

…and I’m grateful.

After I started to have pain in my knee, I took about two weeks off from running. During those two weeks, I went to Aruba, which was gorgeous and so very hot. I decided to run a mile on the treadmill at my hotel gym because my knee was feeling good. I took it easy and the mile went well with no pain. I arrived home this past Monday and decided to take advantage of the nice weather on Tuesday with an easy 3 mile run outside. About a mile and a half into the run, the pain was back and I literally could not run anymore. I made my appointment and saw the doctor the following day. She twisted and turned and poked and pronged my knee and came to the conclusion that I probably have tendonitis. I still have to go for an x-ray and make sure that it is not fractured. Her treatment for me is RICE and some physical therapy. I have never gone for physical therapy so this should be interesting. I am somewhat excited to see what exercises they will teach me.

Why am I grateful? I’m grateful for all the races and runs my knees/legs/body have given me this year. This year was a giant year for me in my long distance running quest. I ran three half marathons and one marathon during 2009. All of my training helped me get stronger and faster. In June, I ran the Jim Hedgus 5k in 24:13. Not only did I accomplish my goal of sub-8 min miles and PR, but I also placed 3rd in my age group. It was my first ever age group placement and I received a nice medal for it! Then in October, right before MCM, I ran the Tara Costa Bethpage 5k in 23:19. I shaved almost an entire minute off my previous 5k PR and again, I placed 3rd in my age group, except this time I received a trophy. I also ran two 10ks this year and would have loved to break the 8 min mile barrier in those however; my plan to do that was after MCM. I know I can break 8 in a 10k. I’ve done it in training numerous times and I’m ready to do it in a race. I just need to get my knee back in running shape.

It’s funny how right now I’m mentally ready to run but physically I can’t. Most of the time, it’s the complete opposite. I’m not letting this frustration get to me. Instead, I’m working on strengthening my body in other ways, healing my knee and being grateful for an amazing first year in long distance running. For all you other runners who are currently dealing with an injury, be grateful…I think it will help us all heal and run faster.

In love with my legs…

As a girl, I know that we tend to always focus on what is wrong with our bodies. I have always been aware of my body and how I look. I never took it to the extreme where I developed an eating disorder or where I had an unhealthy obsession with the gym but I always, and still am, aware of how my body looks or how my clothes fit, etc. I definitely have “those days” where I hate the way my arms look or pinch at the fat on my stomach or wish I could just lose those extra five pounds. I am girl, it’s in our genes. But during my marathon training I definitely had less of “those days” and more of the days where I found myself saying “I love my legs”. There were more days of being in love with my own body. I would wake up most days and admire the leaner me. I was reaping the rewards of my training and still am. Today during my total body conditioning class at the NYSC, my friend said to me “Michelle your legs are jacked! I’m so jealous”. I happily told her it was from running. Her comment made me feel so good because I have always loved my legs. I think they are my best asset and MCM only made them better. So during class today, I got down as low as I could and held my squat position for as long as I could, even though my legs were still sore from yesterday’s boot camp class, because I love my legs and know that they are only getting stronger and more beautiful from all I put them through. I am seriously in love with my legs and I’m not crazy.

Post-Marathon Depression (“PMD”)…if there is such a thing

Okay so I think I have a little bit of PMD. Is this normal??? It’s been over two weeks since my debut at MCM 2009 and I feel like I have been on a little bit of an emotional roller coaster. The first couple of days following MCM, I was on a happy high. I felt really strong and proud. I got teary eyed whenever I would think of my run through the streets of DC and how amazing every part of the race was. I amazed myself and would smile when I thought about how I could now say that I have run a marathon.

One of the best things about MCM 2009 was that the NYC Marathon was the following Sunday and being that I live and work in NYC, I was surrounded by NYC’s marathon FEVER the entire week leading up to the race. I loved every minute of it. I found myself taking notice of all the runners that week who had come from near and far to participate in the city’s marathon. I observed many running or athletic stores advertising “NYC Marathon Sales” or “Specials” and I had to resist the temptation to buy some new gear. On the subway, right away I spotted all the race packet bags and goodies runners had accumulated at the expo (which I had contemplated checking out but never did). I became aware of runners taking in the sights of the city in their sneakers and race gear. Inside I smiled knowing that I just had the 26.2 mile experience all of these runners were about to take part in on that Sunday. They were going to feel the MAGIC. I prayed for good weather on Sunday and that the running gods would look over the 40,000 runners who would be running through a city that I proudly call my home. On the day of the marathon, I was headed to the JETS game over at Giants Stadium in New Jersey and our bus had driven through Manhattan. I was the only person on the bus who got excited and shouted when I noticed the runners making their way towards the Queensborough Bridge to head into Manhattan. I watched with envy. After a terribly embarrassing JETS game against the Miami Dolphins, I quickly asked one of my friends with an Iphone to look up the winner of the NYC Marathon. I was hoping an American would capture the men’s title and said that out loud. My non-running friend responded with “It looks like an African won. What else is new. His name is Meb Keflezighi” (of course he could not pronounce Meb’s name correctly). I went BONKERS when I heard and had to explain to him Meb’s life story and how he was an American (I will blog more on my thoughts about Meb being American later). I don’t know Meb (although my best running friend has driving him to the airport, read her story here MilePosts), but I had read about his story before and felt inspired. I remember being super excited when I received my NYC Marathon official race program compliments of the NYRR and saw that he would be competing. So I was thrilled when I heard that he won and laughed about how my non-running friend assumed from his last name that he was just another African who kicked our American butts again haha.

So what does this have to do with PMD? Although I had the excitement from finishing my first marathon combined with the anticipation of the NYC marathon to keep me on could nine, I still could not stop myself from thinking “What now?”. This question gave me PMD.

I made my decision to start long distance running back in January of this year. I ran my first half marathon in March and my second in May. With each of those half marathons, I had goals in mind and something to look forward, something to be anxious about. I figured in order to take on the marathon I would need to start somewhere and that somewhere would be the half marathon. I ran two half marathons because I felt the need to redeem myself of my failed performance in my first half marathon attempt. After my half marathons, I kept up my running and was probably averaging about 15-20 miles per week until I headed on my three-week vacation to Europe in July. I had a nice break from running, although I did run a little bit in my hotel gym in Budapest. Once I returned from Europe, I began my marathon training. I had 14 weeks dedicated to MCM. Those 14 weeks flew by because I had my marathon to focus on. It gave me something to look very forward to and be anxious about. For the past couple of months, my legs have been running and running and running and my head has been running with all thoughts running. Now I’m still running and thinking running but the race anticipation and anxiety has drifted away.

This past Saturday, I was supposed to run a 10k with my husband. It’s an annual race we do every year in Rockville Centre on Long Island. I wanted to run it so badly but had to bail out at last minute due to some funny feeling in my left knee. After MCM, I stupidly ran way too early and didn’t give my body the proper amount of recovery time. As a result, I think I may have slightly injured my knee. I know it’s my body’s way of telling me to give it a little break. So I am. I am now spending more time in the gym rather than on the pavement and working on my strengthening my core and upper body. After MCM, my upper body and lower back were more sore than my legs, which tells me that I need to work on my core. Although I have been working out with a trainer and taking boot camp classes at the gym, I still feel the PMD. I think I need to sign up for another race as soon as my knee is feeling okay. I think I will start looking for one.

My First Marathon

On Sunday, October 25, 2009 I finished the 2009 Marine Corps Marathon in 4 hours 9 minutes and 57 seconds. It was the HAPPIEST DAY OF MY LIFE. I can finally say that I have run and finished a marathon, all 26.2 miles of it! I am a 2009 MCM Finisher!!!

As for my stats, I finished 6,120 out of 21,111 total runners. As for the female runners, I was 1519 out of 8344 runners. And in my age group, I was 393 out of 1813 runners. Not too bad for my first try.

In the past, people would see that I was a runner and one of the first questions they would ask is “Have you ever run a marathon?”. This was the year I would change my answer to that question. I never took on the marathon because I was afraid of it. I did not feel that I had the dedication and determination to train to run 26.2 miles. I didn’t think I could physically and mentally do it. I didn’t believe in myself.

Well, on Sunday I BELIEVED. I proved myself wrong. I ran the marathon for the first time and I finished strong with a giant smile on my face. I just believed.

It was the most AMAZING race that I have ever run in my entire life and here’s why:

~ I ran smart. I took my time and made sure I was going to enjoy this marathon. I ran this race to run, not to race. I wasn’t focused on a finishing time, just focused on running the entire 26.2 miles and finishing. After running through Georgetown and hitting the mile 10 marker, I felt as if I hadn’t even run a mile. That is how good I felt. Time was just flying by and I guess it was because I was having so much fun. I ran through Haines Point, which is supposed to be one of the toughest parts of the course at miles 12-15, without evening realizing I was in it until I was just about finished with it. I stomped hard on the 13.1 mile marker and smiled proudly.

~ Without an ipod, I ran for all 4 hours listening to all the cheering spectators and loved every second of it. Each time someone shouted “Go Michelle” or “Keep it up Michelle” or “Doing a great job Michelle”, I smiled as I pumped my fists in the air and got a spring in my step. I felt like Rocky running through the streets of our capital. It was INCREDIBLE. I have never run a race with so many awesome spectators. They also provided me with lots of entertainment, such as the signs that read “What took you so long?” or “Sweat is your fat cells crying” or “I will still love you even if you POOP your pants”. They made me laugh.

~ The Marines. Because the Marines are the ones who organize this race, it was the most well organized race I have ever run. Not only do they know how to do it right, they also encouraged and motivated me. As I passed a Marine at mile 20, I watched him run in his fatigues and boots and I thought to myself “Now that is hard Michelle. What you are doing is easy”. I cannot even count how many Marines I high fived and shouted “HOORAH” with. It was just great hearing them shout my name. They also made me feel proud, proud to be running along side them as well as for them and proud to be an American. While running behind a man, I read the back of his shirt which read “I run because I can. I run because I have the freedom to run. I run for those who fight for and protect that freedom”. We were all running for those on Sunday.

~ The finish line at the Iwo Jima Memorial. I was warned that there was a hill just before the finish that I would have to climb. Prior to the race, one of my best running friends told me not to let the hill beat me because I was better than it. So when I made the final turn up that hill, I RAN. I pumped my arms and picked up my feet and just RAN like the wind until I crossed the finish line. The music, the cheers and the announcer all made the finish that much more exciting. I couldn’t wait to grab my medal so I went right to the line for them. As a Marine placed my medal over my head and congratulated me, I quickly threw my arms around him, hugged him tight while crying my eyes out and said “THANK YOU SO MUCH”. He politely responded with “Oh you are very welcome MAAM. Congratulations.” The Marines’ motto is Semper Fidelis which means Always Faithful. I thought of this over and over during my race and how I would always be faithful to MCM. It was the HAPPIEST DAY OF MY LIFE.

~ Runners. With over 21,000 runners, I felt like I was a part of one big party. I chatted with other runners all along the course and shared words of encouragement. I also had some tell me they were envious because so many spectators were cheering my name. I said I had no idea I had so many friends in DC. It was such a good time. I also had friends running the race as well. Before the 10k mark, there was an out and back loop where I ran past runners on their return. I ran the whole stretch keeping my eyes out for my friends, especially my fast one. These friends helped me train both physically and mentally for this race. I couldn’t have been a better prepared first time “thoner” without them. Knowing that we were all running this marathon together made my experience even better. My fast friend told me “There’s MAGIC on race day” and she was right. I felt the MAGIC.

~ My friends and family. I received many emails and texts prior to the race wishing me luck and letting me know that they were all tracking me. At mile 20 I beat the bridge. I was shocked that I felt so good at mile 20 and that I was still RUNNING!!! I kept thinking “Oh my goodness Michelle. This is the furthest you have ever run”. (The most I had ever run prior to this was 20 miles). With each passing mile, my smile got wider. I listened to my mother’s favorite saying and repeated to myself “Slow and Steady Michelle. One foot in front of the other. Slow and Steady”. And although mentally I was in a good place, physically I could feel my body getting a little bit tired at mile 23. I began to think about everyone who was pulling for me at that exact moment and tracking me and how I couldn’t let them down. I was going to keep running and finish. My colleagues had sent me a good luck note days before the race and reminded me that if the marathon was easy, then everyone would do it. They said that when the going gets tough to keep repeating to myself “Run Mishi Run”. It was during the last six miles of the race that I said to myself “Run Mishi RUNNNNNNNNNN!” and so I RAN all the way to the 26.2 mile mark. Without all these thoughts and words of encouragement, those last couple of miles would not have been as enjoyable as they were and I wouldn’t be able to say that I ran for the whole entire 26.2 miles. No walking for me and it was all thanks to my friends and family. Thank you!

~ I must give a special kudos to my husband. On the drive down to DC, he listened to me worry over how terrified I was that I would make it to mile 20 and just break down. He calmed me and told me I would do fine. He helped me believe. He woke up at the crack of dawn to hang out with me under the stars in Arlington Cemetery as we waited for the race to start. He even ran onto the race course at mile 18 to hand me my water bottle as well as a kiss. I needed water desperately then and was so happy he was there. He is my #1 fan.

It astonishes me to think that back in January of this year, the farthest distance I had ever run was 7 miles. I started training for MCM at the end of July. Over a 14 week training schedule, I had run over 375+ miles, spent many hours doing it, had too many 4am wake up calls to count, lost a toenail (which I will lose again after this Sunday’s race) and made many other sacrifices. The best part is that I would do it all over again any day.

A week before the race, I had watched Spirit of the Marathon. For those of you who have never run a marathon and are thinking about it (and even for those who have or just like to run), this is a must watch. I wanted that emotion and feeling I saw in this movie. After the mile 20 mark, I had to compose myself and control my emotions because I knew that finishing the marathon was a POSSIBILITY! I held my tears for the end and boy did it feel good. Runners say that the marathon changes you. Well I think I can honestly say that I am forever changed after MCM 2009. It was truly the HAPPIEST DAY OF MY LIFE.

Hope you enjoyed my race re-cap. I know it was long but my journey took me trials of miles and miles of trials to get here.

Peace, Love and Happy Running,
Mishi

PS- Please don’t ask me when the next marathon will be. I am still on cloud nine from this one and don’t want to get off yet :-)