In The Moment Running: 2016

Saturday, November 26, 2016

Rosie and the Marathon: Madison

I had an obnoxious heading to use for post but it really isn't funny anymore, not that it ever was. It was going to be Grabbin' a Little Pussy" Madison Marathon. It's not funny because America, by way of the electoral college, elected a man who thinks it is OK to do this, force himself on women and plainly be a hateful person.

However, my title was related to what we did in Madison (while I was there for the marathon) with Cindy's brother David. We took him shopping for a new kitten. His cat of many years, Goofy, had passed on beyond her 9 lives a few months earlier. We know how pets enhance our lives and David missed her companionship on a daily basis. The day before the marathon we went on our search. We first went to the Dane County Humane Society. David was looking for a kitten that he could bond with instead of an adult. The society only had one kitten and there was a waiting list for it so we left and went to a place Cindy's sister, Deb (who we also visited with early in the morning) told us about called AniMart and that they might have kittens.

We ventured to AniMart and sure enough, kittens abounded. It didn't take long for David to find Rose, now Rosie, a pretty and friendly light tan kitten. After a little time alone with her, David decided she was the one and Rosie eventually came home with David later in the afternoon. Mission complete.

Trying Rosie out at AniMart

At home with David and Rosie

Madison Marathon

Aside from the visit with Deb and David, always combining trips with running, I was all set to run the Madison Marathon. I ran the Madison mini-marathon (half) a few years ago in the summer and really enjoyed it.

Cindy and I stayed at Hyatt Place, just down the road from the Capitol and where the start/finish line was for the race. It's in a nice quiet neighborhood but close enough to state street, race day activities, and also gave Cindy a chance to see me just past mile 10, a few blocks away on Gorman Street.

We went to the expo at Monona Terrace on Friday when they opened. It was a small expo but well organized for packet-pickup. My number was 1812 and all I could think of was the war of 1812, particularly after we had just ended the ugliest campaign in American history. The technical shirts were a vibrant blue with big fluorescent pink letters, Madison Marathon, across the chest.

After picking up the race packet, we ventured back around the Capitol and down State street, in essence, the retail/restaurant downtown of Madison and a street that is bookended by the University of Wisconsin and the State Capitol. It's a nice walk and a happening' place at the right time. The Badgers were playing at home Saturday and it was homecoming so with the marathon, it was a busy weekend. Enjoying craft beers the way I do, we spotted a place called HopCat. We sat at the bar and was presented with a menu of craft beers from all over the country. The bartender was friendly and had family in Durham. With the plethora of choices, he gave us some samples and then we were on our way with a few pints and snifters of some very tasty brews. Cindy even enjoyed a nice coffee flavored dark beer while we did some pretzel and bruschetta appetizers.

On Saturday morning before the kitten adventures, I decided to do a 2 mile run over by Lake Monona. Although the weather can be adventuresome in Madison this time of year, we were having perfect weather with 40's in the morning and 50's to almost 60 during the day. Saturday morning, the day before the marathon, was bright and crisp. The lake was beautiful and I felt good on this short little jaunt on the lakeside trail.

After visits and finding the kitten and getting David and Rosie situated, it was time to head back to the hotel and find a pre-race pasta dinner. Not knowing where we were going, we must have been directed to one of the better Italian restaurants in Madison, Cento. Although I only had spaghetti and meatballs (3 large balls), it was quite tasty as was the lasagna that Cindy had. We would highly recommend the place for anything Italian.

Race Morning

Since the election, I had struggled all week with sleeping. I couldn't believe what America had done (actually the popular vote has gone to Clinton by over 2 million votes.) After 94 marathons, I knew that decent sleep and low stress the week before was beneficial for running a good marathon. My mod and demeanor was poor all related to the election. It was just a sad and angry time in America. Would running 26.2 miles help my world, my mood, my joy?

Cindy has always been there for me during marathons, early to the start, walking to see me at the interim miles and sometimes the long wait at the finish. Honestly, I think it is what keeps me going sometimes, going in the marathon and wanting to do the next one. We really enjoy getting away for a marathon weekend and doing fun things outside of the race itself. RaceJoy is an app used by some marathons that allows tracking of the runner. Cindy has it on her phone and I have it on mine which I carry in a pack. She knows exactly where I am on the course and my splits for each mile, even at the end when she sees my mile splits getting longer.

The weather was spectacular being in the low 40's at the start and low 50's at the finish, the best temperatures for me to run in. I knew the course would be a rolling course in spots, fair when you roll up and roll down with a few flat areas thrown in. I would much rather run rolling hilly courses than flat ones. As a matter of fact, my best two marathons of 2016, Knoxville and Madison, were rolling and somewhat hilly. Hills in the early miles of a marathon let you ease into the marathon a bit but if not careful, they can zap your strength if the later miles also have hills. Madison is fair throughout. I ran with the 4:20 group for much of the marathon. I hadn't run under 4:20 for a couple of years but with the perfect weather and a course that sets up well for me, I thought I would give it a shot for as long as I could. Interestingly, I was running with a pack of 20 and 30-year olds and almost felt like their Dad running with them. I didn't speak to anyone as I generally don't, but probably should. Just after mile 10, I moved ahead of the pack a bit because I knew Cindy would be waiting at mile 10.75 and I would stop for a hug and kiss. There were not many people out and about during the early miles as we ran near campus and Camp Randall (the Badger football stadium). Of course, after the big win by the Badgers and subsequent partying, I suspect many were still in bed. After I saw Cindy, I rejoined the pack and ran with them up through Maple Bluff.

We were told by the pacers to mentally get prepared for Maple Bluff. Yes, from miles 16-22 from Warner Park through Maple Bluff and being the later miles, the course became quite challenging with unrelenting hills. I eventually fell back on my pace at around mile 21. Although I was still on 4;20 pace, I started to slowly see that fade away. Relentless forward progress, strong and relaxed, my two mantras to get to the finish kept me moving the best I could. The last 3/4 mile uphill to the finish didn't help much. I turned the last corner and saw the finish and started looking for Cindy, my finish kiss and the last few step across the line - 4:31:47. It was my best marathon of the year. Yep, I know not so great for most decent runners, but it was my 95th completed marathon in the last 15 years. I had a good appetite afterward and downed a couple Panera sandwiches, official race food sponsor.

Overall, it was a great weekend and I enjoy going to Madison. It has energy, a good running community, fun places to eat and drink. It is just unfortunate that it is in Wisconsin because I would not dig the winters there. We'll be back either for the mini-marathon or to run the Madison marathon again. Oh, and the race pictures are free, the way they should be!

At the start

Chilly morning

Mile 10.7 with 4:20 pace group

4:20 paces finishing without a group

The finish

Still smiling after 26.2

Wisconsin State Capitol

My biggest fan!

Rosie chillin'

Rosie diggin' her cat tree

Capitol at night

Official free photos

Closer to the finish!

95th marathon complete!

Friday, October 21, 2016

A Tale of the Scale

To many runners, particularly the mid- and back-packers, the scale is our nemesis. Each pound overweight translates to 3 seconds slower per mile run. Hence, 10 pounds adds 30 seconds extra per mile. How about 20., 30, 50, or 70 pounds? well, you can do the math, hopefully! It not only means slower, but the weight puts the body at risk in many other ways, high blood pressure, increased heart rate, and joint stress to name a few. We all have heard stories of miraculous weight loss and the transformation of those individuals into runners. I love those stories and the commitment needed to get there. In my younger days, I did it myself losing 35 pounds to run my first 5K followed up by the NYC Marathon in 1994. Frankly, it wasn't all that miraculous but still an achievement as I ran and biked my way with a new sensible eating plan to become a runner. After 94 marathons, hundreds of other races and an aging slower metabolism, I still struggle with the extra pounds, not 35 but enough to run slower and stress the body. I know the struggle and the struggle is within me as it is in all of us.

Baltimore 2001

My nephew Shawn and I registered for the inaugural Baltimore Marathon after not being able to get into the Marine Corp Marathon. It was going to be my second marathon after running NYC in 1994. It would be Shawn's second marathon after running NYC in 2000. Through the late 90s and in 2000, I had gained half my weight back. The struggle persisted. I had a non-running hamstring injury that took forever to heal and my Mom was sick with emphysema, eventually succumbing to the disease in 2000. Running and the runner's diet had taken a back seat. After seeing Shawn so psyched to be running and me being a spectator at the George Sheehan Classic, I knew that I needed to get back on the course. I did in the 2001 edition of the Baltimore Marathon, the year with the toughest course (think 22 miles uphill) and just after one of the most tragic events in U.S. history, 9/11. All the runners ran with heavy hearts that day including Shawn and me. Shawn finished in 4:01:39 and I struggled to a 4:27:13.

Baltimore 2003

Fast-forward a couple of years. The course in Baltimore has changed nearly every year although now stable with minor modifications over the last few. In 2002, the race director and Corrigan Sports realized that the 2001 course was just not a fair course. Wanting runners to come back they changed the course to make it fair yet still challenging. Shawn hadn't run the 2002 race but came back with a vengeance in 2003. At optimal running weight he ran his best marathon and PR in 3:36:35. After running a worse time in 2002 from 2001, I finally ran a decent marathon in 4:13:27. More than that, in 2003, he went on to run the JFK 50 mile in an amazing time of 9:06.

Baltimore 2004 and 2006

2004 was a breakthrough year for me, particularly in Baltimore as I ran under 4 hours for the first time - 3:48:01. A well-run race is an amazing experience and it feels like your feet are never touching the ground. In a running 'career', for most of us, these kinds of runs only come every so often or for a stretch of races. My stretch of races was from 2004 to 2009. Not every race was fantastic but all of my PRs at all distances were set during this time. My fastest Baltimore Marathon's rank 3rd and 6th out of my list of 94 marathons completed. In 2006. I ran my best Baltimore marathon in 3:47:33.

Shawn continued to run Baltimore well. Also in 2004 and 2006, he broke 4 hours both years, respectively in 3:49:49 and 3:59:25. I've run all 16 editions of the Baltimore marathon and my times have been sporadic but like a weekend golfer who hits that one great, fantastic shot or has that one low round etched in his mind, in hope of another, I continued to come back for more - more cowbell please!

Baltimore 2007 - 2015

During this time period, Shawn had taken many of these years as a hiatus, running one Baltimore marathon in 2011 and accompanying me to run my 50th marathon on my 50th birthday in New Orleans in 2010. With this hiatus and inevitable weight gain, his time in 2010 fell to 4:29:28. Being the 10th anniversary and a celebration for us 10-timers, I ran well in 4:03:42.

Shawn's weight piled on over the next 5-year span. Although mine didn't pile, I put those extra 30 seconds of weight on and combined with my age, just became slower overall. Then in 2015 tragedy struck our family when Shawn's brother, Todd, collapsed and died. We were all saddened and stunned. At 49, it was hard to imagine a life that was well-lived was taken so early.

In December 2015, Shawn's weight was at a high of 232 pounds and with blood pressure skyrocketing he was on blood pressure medicine to manage it. When I would go back to Hagerstown, it became difficult for him to run a few miles without walk breaks. I know how the mental aspect of that feels as I went through it back in 2000 when my Mom was sick and eventually died in March. I had stopped running and I had gained weight to a point where I could not run a mile and a half without walking. I distinctly remember the difficulty both mentally and physically. At a point, one says 'enough is enough'. For me, it was back in June 2000. For Shawn, it was December 2015. He set out on a weight-loss journey following Ideal Protein. With his wife as his weight-loss coach (who also had magnificent weight-loss on this plan), he started a journey that would change his physical and mental life.

June 2015

Baltimore 2016

With Ideal Protein, there are phases one goes through for optimal weight-loss and they must be strictly followed. The early phases do not include any exercise which means no running. There are definitely good stories out there of runners who lost weight by including running (or other forms of exercise) in their weight-loss program. However, the more one runs or exercises, the more calories need to be consumed to maintain the regimen which can lead to overeating as the body craves calories.

From December through April, being disciplined and focused, with the help of his Ideal Protein coach, the weight melted off - 232, 220, 200, 190, 170 to 162 - a loss of 70 pounds. After hitting his goals, he could start running again and run he did. Seventy pounds off of the joints, de-stressing the heart, and mentally knowing that what he just did is harder than running any marathon, he got back out on the road and trails. There was no more need for blood pressure medicine. The heart works as it should when the body is how it should be.

I saw the excitement again - new running shoes and watch, scouring the internet for races, joining the social media running sites. It was all there again. Frankly, it was motivating for me as my motivation started waning after aging starts to take one's best runs away from them. I needed to see that excitement in someone else so I could see that excitement in myself again. Although I had not stopped running since 2000, 16 years running 5-6 days a week, 94 marathons, 31 half-marathons, 8 ultras, intense personal struggles, the nagging aches and pains and enough weight gain to make a difference, I found my motivation levels waning. Shawn re-energized me seeing him so excited again.

He found himself wanting to do the difficult runs on trails and roads to make a statement not only about his weight-loss but the discipline it took to get there. Running is about discipline and consistency. It is the same with eating. There are no quick fixes. One does not get off their couch one Saturday and run a marathon just as one doesn't wake up in the morning weighing 70 pounds less.

One of the first difficult challenges was to run the Quadzilla 15K. This is how it is described.

Quadzilla is pure guts. It will test your limits. This is a trail race: there are hills, rocks, roots, and water. You think you’ve run hills … until Quadzilla. This course is a BEAST! It will take you to the middle of nowhere and back. It will test your spirit, try your patience, and keep throwing a curve ball at you again and again.

Shawn (in yellow) making the climb

Reading the description of the Quadzilla, this is the very essence of weight-loss. "It will test your limits...test your spirit, try your patience and keep throwing you a curve ball time and again."

I invited him to Durham to run the Running of the Bulls 8000, a premier road race in Durham - fast and challenging at the same time. It was going to be our first race together in years and we were both pretty excited about it. In the usual Durham heat and humidity, we both ran decent races.

The Quadzilla and this faster 8000 meters proved to Shawn that he was good to go and back in the saddle again - 70 pounds of weight-loss running 8-minute miles. At that point, I also knew that the Baltimore Marathon, one that we had run 5 times together was in his grasp. I also knew he was going to do well. I received two free entries to the Baltimore Running Festival the previous year for being a 15-time Baltimore marathon runner. I offered one up to Shawn to bring us back together again for another run in Baltimore.

Of course, training in the summer is not the easiest road to a fall marathon, particularly in North Carolina where the heat and humidity are unrelenting. Even for the east coast as a whole, it is a challenge for runners. In June I ran the Banff Canadian marathon so I started the summer in nice cool weather but most of the summer saw temperatures above 90 degrees. I could see the times that Shawn was running and the training that he was doing and it was right on track for a really good marathon.

In September, we decided to put it to the test with a 20-mile race called Revenge of the Penguins organized by Marathon Charity Cooperation. The course was primarily flat on the C&O canal near Washington in Potomac MD. However, the weather had not reached fall-like temperatures yet and was nearly 80 degrees at the finish on race day. I sort of melted but Shawn kicked butt. He ran 2:53:24, 8:40 pace, placed 3rd in his age group and 15th out of 109. This is when I knew that his marathon in Baltimore was going to be great! This picture shows the difference between his run and mine!

The Marathon

Here we are lining up for the Baltimore Marathon for the 6th time together. Shawn's journey has been full of patience, faith, perseverance and relentless forward progress both with his weight-loss and running. He is living proof that it can be done and that weight matters not only when it comes to running but when it comes to quality of life.

Shawn said he was a little nervous. I'm still nervous even after completing 94 marathons so it is to be expected. But, these smiles show how wonderful this moment is.

Happy days!

Altra's and Saucony's

Contemplating the big race

Standing at attention?

Garmin 235 strapped to our wrists

My champion crew - Cynthia Anne

The weather was as perfect as one gets for a marathon, 50 degrees at the start and 50's most of the time. There were no excuses not to run well or at least not to enjoy the run in those temperatures. I told Shawn at the start that I could see him running 3:45 - 3:50. I saw his training and I saw that 20 miler. I knew it was in him. The start went off with confetti flying everywhere, the only marathon I have run that shoots off confetti at the start. I love the Baltimore start, confetti flying, fans lining the street and an easy 3 miles uphill to the highest point on the course. I saw Shawn for the first half mile and then only once more on an out and back sect (he was already nearly 2 miles ahead of me) before meeting up with him at the finish.

Confetti

Salute to the flag

Shawn leaving mile 8.75

Mile 8.75

There always needs to be a kiss somewhere on the course for a marathon and it looks like we both found those people to kiss at mile 8 - Rene and Cynthia Anne. They may have added 10 seconds to our times but knocked off minutes!

I was pretty consistent pace-wise through 17 miles, although faster than I should have been and when I say faster I mean in a slow kind of way. My goal was 4:30. I knew by mile 21 that I was likely not going to make that goal. I finished in 4:43 and although it is hard to be "happy" with that, it is what it is these days. I still finished better than nearly half in my age group.

As for Shawn, this is the feel-good point of the story. I met him at the Johnny Unites statue figuring that he had been there for awhile. He wanted me to guess his time and I figured I had guessed it at the start. But, I was wrong! He destroyed my low-end estimate for his time. Here is the story morning glory.

Yes, that reads 3:37:58 only 1 minute 23 seconds off his PR (3:36:35) from the 2003 Baltimore Marathon. Also, it was run as a negative split which is amazing for the Baltimore course because the second half is more challenging with the hills than the first. You can do the math but that PR is 13 years ago which is amazing in itself. Then when you put the 70 pounds of weight-loss into the equation, it is simply astonishing. In 2015, he could barely run 3 miles with me using walk breaks and here he is running 26.2 miles at an 8:19 pace.

Prologue

So here are the lessons learned. You cannot wish to lose weight just as you cannot wish to cross a marathon finish line. It takes faith, hard work, patience, perseverance, planning, fighting through struggles, and a desire to make it to the goal. It also helps to have a coach and motivator, someone who can help you through the tough and weak times. It is all within us for not just losing weight and running but for everything in life. If you want something, nothing is free, there needs to be an effort to achieve it. I know Shawn's faith in God played a major role in all of this. God and Jesus are there to cast a worrisome burden onto their shoulders. You can do it if you are committed to it, whatever it is. Shawn was committed to losing weight and subsequently reinventing his running life and crossing the marathon finish line. As the Brits would say, well-done Shawn, well-done!

Here are some more pictures from the weekend.