Marathon Training - Week 14 Wrap Up

Sept 17th-Sept 23rd ~ 29.1 Miles

Day 92 ~ Recovery Run (3.1)
Day X ~ REST
Day 93 ~ Boot Camp
Day 94 ~ Run (7 Miles)
Day 95 ~ Dance & Run (3.1)
Day 96 ~ REST
Day 97 ~ Long Run (16 Miles)

I apparently can't keep up with the number of days in this thing. I was doing pretty good there for a bit. Anyway, I guess the number of days isn't that important. It's all about the miles, right?

So, you guys know last week's long run did me in. Bad. I suffered. Hard. I did all the wrong things and paid for it. I beat myself up for it. Anyway, this week's long run went sooooo much better. It started off with appropriate rest and fueling the night before. Yes, rest and fueling makes a HUGE difference when you start getting up into the double digits. It's a serious thing. I had my beloved DGB burger from Red Robin and about six and a half hours of pretty decent sleep.

When I woke up bright and early the next morning--around 3:30am--my best friend in the entire world, my Pookie, was sitting in my garage with her husband, having a chat with my husband. She lives like 160 miles away, so we don't get to see each other much. But she knew I needed some time with her, and she came to Memphis to see me. I didn't say anything. I just hugged her whole entire head. I can't remember the last time I was so happy to see another human being.

The boys went to their respective beds. Pookie sat and chatted with me while I had a cup of coffee and something light to eat. We talked about lots of things, but the thing that really stayed with me was when she told me I could do this whole marathon madness, that she believed in me. I left for my long run with the biggest smile on my face and the best warmth in my heart. She's not a runner. But she gets it. That's all I needed. Did I mention I love her like whoa?

The first four miles I did by myself. That worked well for me. I had about an hour to get warmed up and get my head in the game. Almost like reading a book and having coffee to mentally prepare yourself before going to work. I enjoyed the sounds of my music without other gossiping and chatting around me. It was just me and the road, and I loved it. On Johnson Road, I picked up Kirsten and we finished the remaining twelve miles with mostly laughs and smiles. The last mile was a bit of a bear, but I sucked it up and got through it. Had lots of little sections of negative splits. That was nice. It looked like the longer miles that messed up those splits were fuel and hydrate breaks. Overall, I'm happy with the long run. It left me feeling like I could conquer the world if I wanted to.

Later that night, I celebrated my longest miles ever with my bestie, RockBand, rum and Fireball. Don't judge me. It's been a minute since I've been able to go crazy and have fun with my Pookie like that. The most awesome part of that evening was when I realized I was actually dancing... not twelve hours after running sixteen miles. HOLY SHIT! It was like a cartoonish AH-HA moment. I've conditioned myself enough to run sixteen miles then dance and jump around like a fool. All in the same freaking day!!! This time last year, after running my first half marathon, I could barely walk for two days. I had to let that sink in for a minute. That's the moment I realized I was a baddass. And I'm totally okay owning that.

"Never underestimate your own strength. You were born for a purpose and are blessed with the power to achieve it." ~ Leon Brown

Marathon Training - Week 13 Wrap Up

Sept 10th-Sept 16th ~ 29.1 Miles

Day 86 ~ Recovery Run (3.1)
Day 87 ~ REST
Day 88 ~ Boot Camp & Run (3 Miles)
Day 89 ~ Run (4.07)
Day XX ~ REST
Day 90 ~ Cooper Young 4 Miler
Day 91 ~ Long Run (15 miles)

(One of these days, I'll get the numbers right again. UGH.)

FOOD PREP MEAL -  Thai Quinoa Salad Bowl

There was a time, in the not too distant past, when I struggled sooooo hard to fit 20 miles into my training schedule every week without killing myself, burning out, or absolutely hating running. I won't be so bold as to say that time has past, because I'm sure it hasn't. I'm sure there will be weeks in the future where running at all will be a chore. That's real. But we're not going to talk about what the future MIGHT bring. We're going to talk about the fact I put up almost 30 miles last week and I didn't die. That last part... the not dying part... is important, because Saturday, I honestly thought my death was upon us. I'm going to go ahead and tell you everything I did wrong to make Saturday so hard.

First... it's important for you to know that 15 miles was my longest distance to date.

Second... it's even more important for you to know that I'm one of the most stubborn people you'll ever meet in your life, and if you doubt that, Kirsten - the crazy lady helping keep me in check - will gladly back me up on this.

So, Friday night I did the Cooper-Young 4 miler. It's a great race, known for the epic party throughout one of the coolest neighborhoods in the city. I signed up for it a LONG time back... so long ago my bib number was like 134 or something. Upwards of 2,000 people signed up for that race. Anyway, I told myself I was going to be a good girl and take it nice and steady. I honest to god thought I was, and at the half mile point RunKeeper told me I was running at about a nine and a half minute pace. C'mon, Allison, slow your ass down. Everyone knows this is a huge problem for me. Before the first mile ended, I'd had a shot of Fireball, and I swore I was slowing down.

The first mile was behind me and I'd managed to get myself to about a 10:00 pace. Awesome. But not good enough. I was going to pay for this tomorrow on my long run. I just knew it. 1.5 miles, 10:20 average pace. 2.0 miles, 10:17 average pace. Then I came up on another guy offering Fireball. What the hell, right? It worked a little. Why not try some more? I pretty much did intervals after that. Walk whenever. Run whenever. Just enjoy the party. And right before the last turn, maybe a quarter of a mile from the finish, someone was handing out Vodka gummies. After all I'd had, I couldn't turn down booze AND sugar.

I got home that night around the time I normally go to bed on Friday nights. I was wound up from running and my husband and a couple friends had just come in from throwing darts. They wanted to throw a few more rounds in the garage. I stayed up and talked to them. Before I knew it, it was 10:30.

Oh. My. God. So late!

All jokes aside, I slept like crap that night. I remember checking the clock at midnight, 2am, 3am, and then at 4am I just decided to stay up since it was about that time anyway.

And to make matters worse, I didn't properly fuel for Saturday because I had a race Friday night and didn't want to eat anything too heavy...

So as you can imagine, Saturday was pretty miserable for me. Wait. No. That's too broad of a statement. Saturday started out awesome. For eleven miles I felt like I could conquer the world. Then all the bad things started to happen. It started with my thighs burning on even the slightest incline. Then fatigue set in and my back started to hurt. My shoulders hurt. My head hurt. Then my stomach hurt. Every time I tried to run I felt like I was going to hurl. I spent four miles bitching, moaning, complaining, and making every excuse why I couldn't run anymore, to the point I told Kirsten if she would just leave me she could get on with her day. Stubborn cow stayed with me the whole time. <3

Moral of the story, don't deviate from your routine and expect a stellar performance, especially when you're adjusting to new distances or speeds, or even new routines. Your body will real fast teach you that you are not a.) the exception to the rule, or b.) half as bad ass as you think you are. I've definitely learned my lesson. Soooo... I guess I should strap on a Nun's habit for the duration of my training. HAHAHA!!!

Takeaway? 26.2 miles in like 5 or so hours doesn't sound so scary now that I've squeezed in 22 miles in less than 48 hours. It probably doesn't compare, but as of this moment, I believe I can do it.

I Became Overweight Today... and I'm Thrilled About It!!!

I know you're probably thinking what is this crazy lady talking about. Who is happy about being overweight? Well... give me a moment to explain. I'm going to start with the word obese. It's not a very pretty sounding word, is it? In fact, Google's dictionary gives a grim and unappealing definition:

Gross. Bloated. Bulky. Paunchy. Corpulent?!?! Doesn't sound too pretty, huh?

**This isn't to fat shame or body shame anyone. I know people get super sensitive about words these days. I'm obviously sensitive about the word obese, otherwise we wouldn't be here right now. Right? Personally, I think if you're happy and in love with yourself, that's all that really matters in the end. I'm not the person who is happy and in love with myself because I know what I'm capable of and obesity isn't it. Not for me.**

Now that the disclaimer is out of the way...

When I started with my Fitbit on February 7th, 2014, I weighed 250 pounds. And that wasn't even the heaviest I'd ever been, but it was the most humiliating and damaging to my self esteem because I'd let myself get that way after working so hard to get the weight off. I'd lost 90 pounds in 9 months, only to have it come back with a vengeance after I'd gotten laid off from my previous job. I'd spent 2-3 months sitting on my butt, drinking coffee and eating comfort food because I was scared and sad. I was going to lose my house. I was up to my eyeballs in credit card debt because the state of Mississippi maxed out their unemployment at $217 a week back then and we still had to make ends meet while I was looking for a job. IT jobs weren't aplenty in that area.

I moved back to Memphis in 2012, and because of my living situation, I was eating a lot of fast food. I wasn't making good food choices and I damn sure wasn't exercising. I had books to finish writing, things I'd started when I was still unemployed. I had excuses... sooooo many excuses not to take care of myself.

In 2013, we were finally back on our feet enough to get our own place again, and every single morning I drove past an Anytime Fitness. It kept calling to me. "Allison, get off your fat ass and get in here. You know you're not happy." I wasn't. It took awhile, but eventually I joined. I bought a Fitbit because the company I work for has fitness incentives, not the least to mention was a fat deduction to the cost of my insurance. So basically, my gym membership paid for itself because of the discount on my insurance... because I went to the gym. Okay. Cool. I'm in. Lot's of other fitnessy things followed, but that makes this story SUPER long. Basically, I started walking for an hour a day, then I added dance twice a week, then came running, then came boot camp and cycling and... yeah, I've lost my mind.

When I bought my Fitbit in 2014, I was 250 pounds with a BMI of 41.6.

By this chart's logic, I was very severely obese.

What? No? You gotta be kidding me. I didn't look very severely obese. I mean... those are the people who can't get out of bed, right? Apparently not, and I HATE this chart and that word so much. Because had I seen this chart at that point in my life, I might've become the person who couldn't get out of bed, who couldn't tie their own shoes, who couldn't take care of themselves on the most basic level. I could've easily become so depressed it got worse. But I didn't...

This is where I am today.

I'm not sharing this to brag, though I will admit I'm going to celebrate the hell out of this. Might even get the cake my husband and I were craving so badly last night. I'm sharing this because the very real truth of weight loss and transformation is it doesn't happen overnight. It happens over hours, days, months, and years of dedication. It's not easy, but in the end it's rewarding. 

The expectation is always to see pounds fall off fast, and they will, but don't get discouraged when they stop falling off, when your body gets used to the new things you're doing and stops responding the way it had been. It'll happen. It's called a plateau and it sucks. In fact, when I plateaued, I got so discouraged I told my husband, "I might as well eat all the things since the weight isn't changing." I didn't stop running or working out, but I totally ate ALL THE THINGS I could get my hands on. The harder I trained the more I wanted to eat, and that's still a thing. I come in from working out soooooooo hungry and I want everything I'm not supposed to eat. The longer the miles get, the more I want to stuff all the sweet carbs in my face. Every Saturday is cheat day. I get one. I make it worth it. Prepping my lunches has helped get my weight loss going again. All I can do is stick with it and hope the pounds keep coming off. In the meantime, I'm perfectly content being overweight.  

Marathon Training - Week 12 Wrap Up

Sept 3rd-Sept 9th ~ 24.4 Miles

Day 79 ~ Recovery Run (3.1)
Day 80 ~ REST
Day 81 ~ Boot Camp & Run (3.1)
Day 82 ~ Run (6)
Day 83 ~ Dance & Run (3)
Day 84 ~ REST (Carb up!)
Day 85 ~ Long Run (9.1)

(I just realized my numbers are completely off this week. Sorry, y'all. I can only blame vacation brain.)

FOOD PREP MEAL -  None this week. We got back in town from camping on Monday and I took the day off Tuesday so we spoiled ourselves with Cheesecake Factory. Don't judge me. ;-)

I started this post with a rundown of all the stuff I'd done all week and blah, blah, blah about how it went and how I felt. Then, after pouring two paragraphs onto the page, I decided that wasn't the story I wanted to tell this week because something much bigger happened, something I needed, something that really reminded me that I'm a lot harder on myself than I should be. I don't know why, but I am. I keep trying to prove to everyone else I'm a good person, when really the only person who needs to know that is me. Well, Saturday, three very special ladies, someone calling me a "true success story," and an amazing co-coach made me really see the things I needed to see. And then my husband said, "See, I've been telling you this stuff the whole time." #blesshim

Let me back up, because this has the potential to be a really good story and I'll try to condense it as much as I can...

In 2015, a friend told me to come join this women's run/walk program with her. She wanted me to be a beginner runner. Ummmm... no. I didn't want any part of it. I was fine dancing two nights a week and WALKING on my treadmill for an hour every morning. I was losing weight and life was good. My friend, she persisted. She asked me two or three more times, and finally I gave in. I hated everything about it. It was too hot outside. I couldn't breathe. My stomach always hurt. Who the hell in their right mind ran... for the fun of it? I mean I liked walking my 5Ks just fine. I didn't need that to change. Obviously, it changed. I'm a sucker for good peer pressure.

After eight weeks of I hate this crap, we finally got to the morning of the graduation 5K. I was freaking pumped. Soooooo excited to be out there. I'd worked my butt off and now it was over. I went out hard and fast, and by the halfway point I hated life. Past the second mile I thought this would never end and I would die wayyyyyyy before the next mile marker. Then I came roaring across the finish line and I couldn't wait to do it again, but next time I wanted to be faster. That's when I knew the bug had really bitten. I freaking LOVED running.

In 2016 and 2017, I went back as a coach for the beginner runners because I wanted to pass on what I'd gained from the experience. It was important for these ladies to know it wasn't going to be easy, but it would damn sure be worth it. They needed to know it got easier if you did things right and trusted the process. I wanted them to learn from the mistakes I'd made.

This year was an exceptional year for me personally with this program. I honestly thought I was sort of useless as a coach because I'm super shy if I'm not familiar with you. I don't talk to strangers. I'm very much a back of the class kind of girl. I'd hoped that coaching would get me out of that, but thus far it hadn't. Then I met Bobbie and Shirley...

These ladies were tough and committed, and they pushed through the training and set goals for themselves, and week after week I watched them become stronger runners. They were so grateful to me for spending my time with them when I could've been doing something else--their words, not mine. Truth? I enjoyed every second of it. It didn't matter how fast or how slow we were going. I was doing exactly what I'd come back to the beginner runner program to do. I was helping someone love running the way I did. Both ladies set a 40 minute goal time. Both ladies finished right around 38 minutes. I couldn't have been more proud of them.

Then there was a third lady who I'd seen but hadn't really spoken to. Catherine was with Bobbie and Shirley, and a few other ladies when we started the race Saturday morning. Somewhere before mile two I heard someone call my name. It was Catherine. She said, "please don't leave me out here alone." I told her that I was going to pace the ladies like I promised, but I would come back for her. I kept watching for her, making sure she was close by. She was. Then she wasn't.

Well, luckily, Terri Clarke--another fine member of our wonderful running community--was also there and between her and Marley--another lady runner--they were able to pace everyone else to the finish line while I went to get Catherine. She wasn't that far behind. Close enough if I'd had my glasses on I would've seen her. The race wasn't easy for her, and though she wanted to give up, she didn't. And when she crossed that finish line, she did it in beast mode. She ran hard and fast with me yelling beside her to "run, girl! Run!"Again, I found myself incredibly proud of what these women were doing for themselves. Sappy, ain't it? Catherine cried and hugged and cried and hugged, and it was probably the sweetest thing I'd been a part of all day... until Bobbie handed me a thank you note that made my eyeballs leak. Then Julianne--you guys have seen her name a lot--gave me a high five and said "Good job, Coach" when I told her that Bobbie and Shirley made their goal.

There was a point to this, I promise. While people say "I hate running" or "running sucks," I can't help but disagree. I know it's a matter of perspective, but the perspective it gave me was seeing that even though I'm no one important, I can inspire. I can empower. I'm not rich and famous, but I too can be looked up to simply because of how I chose to treat other people. Am I perfect? Not by a long shot. Will I ever be perfect? Not even close. Can I see perfection in myself? Well, I'm certainly trying. I'm hoping at the end of this journey, when I cross the finish line after 26.2 miles and all these weeks of training, my eyes and heart will be more open to the possibility of me being this awesome, inspiring person everyone else sees.

"Kind words can be short and easy to speak, but their echoes are truly endless." -Mother Teresa

Marathon Training - Week 11 Wrap Up

Aug 27th-Sept 2nd ~ 25.8 Miles

Day 72 ~ Recovery Run (3.4)
Day 73 ~ WRWM Coaching (3 miles)
Day 74 ~ Boot Camp
Day 75 ~ Base Miles (6.18)
Day 76 ~ Walked 3 miles (after packing the car)
Day 77 ~ Set up camp and ate camp food, then did planks by the river... on my rest day.
Day 78 ~ Long Run (Traded 14 pavement miles for 10.34 gravelly, hilly miles.)

FOOD PREP MEAL -  Chipotle Chicken Quinoa Burrito Bowl

Week eleven already seems so far away, that I had to go back and look at the pictures to remember everything I was feeling/enduring/or fighting to push through the previous week. I'm telling you, three days of quiet time on the river was everything the doctor ordered. Okay, maybe I could've done without the rum and the Fireball, but this girl had needs, and getting sloppy ass drunk was one of them. I'm such a lightweight, however, sloppy ass drunk is one rum and diet coke and a single shot of Fireball. Don't hate me because I'm a cheap date. LOL

It's pretty safe to say that each run felt pretty good. I think the only day I absolutely didn't want to do anything was Thursday, and that had everything to do with having to pack up the car and nothing at all to do with exhaustion from training. So massive bonus there. Boot camp Tuesday morning was even awesome. I had slight pain over my left knee, but Dr. Wonderful took care of that for me.

My long run wasn't 14 miles like it should've been. Mentally, I was there. I was ready to do it. I told myself that just because I wasn't at home didn't mean I couldn't do those miles. That was before I realized that getting out of camp was ALLLLLLL up hill, and I mean up long, tall, gravelly hills. So in reality, for the effort, I might've done 14 miles. I will say that it was a fun and somewhat frightening adventure. My love of horror movies made the adventure better than the run. I'm woman enough to admit that. There are more pictures on my Facebook and Instagram.

The Sunday recovery miles have yet to disappoint. I know its coming. I know that after running 16, 18 or 20 miles on Saturday there will be a Sunday when the thought of pounding pavement will reduce me to tears. Right now, I plan to enjoy the comfortable Sundays, while doing the cross-training needed to make this whole experience a lot less painful.

The best part of the week, however, wasn't the training or eating the bad foods, but the fact that my LARGE InkNBurn singlets finally fit me in a way that I'm not embarrassed to wear. I started out in an 2XLarge, so this is a huge deal for me.

UPDATE FROM THE PREVIOUS POST....

I'm not one who typically likes to wallow in my self-pity. After an inspiring email from my best friend in the entire world, you guys know her as Pookie, I decided to stop making myself more miserable than I needed to be. Or at least try to. To start that process, I reached out to a running buddy who nearly made me puke all over my Mizunos last time I ran with her. In her defense, she was trying to get me to finish a 5k in 28 minutes, in the middle of summer and on a full stomach. We figured out real fast the three things don't constitute a working combination for me.

Anyway, Kirsten is funny as hell, crazy, and loves to talk, and from what I hear can keep me on pace pretty damn good. She has agreed to do the long runs with me, and since she's all like "I can do a 50k for breakfast" I figured she was just insane enough to get up before the sun and run lots of stupid miles with me. Sometimes training is also about regrouping and finding what's going to work for you. Just because things didn't start the way they were supposed to doesn't mean they can't finish with a stellar ending. In December, I expect to have my stellar ending. To quote Michael Jordan...

"You must expect great things of yourself before you can do them."