Endless tomorrows

I thought not of the day's worries and sorrows but rather my mind filled with flurries of endless tomorrows. 

As I sit in a seminar, contemplating how long it will take me to finish my experiments this afternoon, I waffle about whether to run 8 or 10 miles later today. My hip flexor felt a little tight this morning on my walk in, perhaps I should just do 8, my legs need a little rest. "Just do 8? Who is writing this blog?", you ask, perplexed. Certainly it can't be the quality-not-quantity middle distance runner you've grown to know. 

"It is still me!" I exclaim, a newly minted mileage buff. The past couple of months I have been flirting just above and below 60 mile weeks, and partially adopted a naive sense of being part of the club. The club of long distance runners, marathoners, those undergoing the real trial of miles. I don't want to mislead you, I am very aware that I'm not running high mileage. BUT I have been running high Robyn mileage. In other words, I've (finally) figured out a training regimen that does not result in physical breakdown over 40 miles per week. 

No, I'm not moving up to marathons (or 10Ks for that matter), I'm still focused on breaking 5:00 in the mile. August is wrapping up and I have just a few more weeks of my mileage base before I transition to lactate threshold and tempo work - sticking in the 50's for weekly miles. I'm not sure how my indoor track season will pan out, but it's fun to find new comfortable states in my training. Especially finding a way to reliably increase my volume by a whopping 25-30 miles per week. I still surprise myself when I think of an 8 mile run as an easy day, however, there are many training challenges to come... I'm just going to savor this feeling for now. 

PS - Random destination run recommendation: Niagara Falls, Toronto side at 7-8am (before the tourists!) to the butterfly gardens

PPS - If you're curious, the main 3 changes to my training are:

1. Inhaler - controlling my asthma has drastically improved my recovery between training runs

2. Hip circuit - religious strengthening & range of motion exercises 3x per week has kept me moving relatively pain free

3. Dairy - this delicious food group makes me feel ill/fatigued, so now, sadly, I eat less of it. (<3 cheese forever)

Inch by Inch

Some runners cross the finish line and swing a fist in the air. Though you often can’t hear them, you imagine a loud and breathy ‘YEAH’ exploding from their lungs. A rush of triumph. A big ole in-your-face to the non-believers. A fleeting glance atop Mount Victory.

I had one of those this week. Sure, I have good days now and then and finish my run with a smile and an elated mood, but rarely do I – call me cautious – celebrate so audaciously. But Tuesday night, whew, I had a doozy. Picture this: dressed in all black except for my flashy flats and a neon headband, it is February after all, I toss a water and pink sticky note with the workout written on it onto the ground. Gradually the track clears of lingering students and the pleasant 50 degrees drop to 40 while I warm up. Then, 10x400m silhouetted against a quickly vanishing sun, followed by 4x200 on tired legs. Soon enough, I’m three miles into what was designed to be a brutal mid-season workout. The kind of workout that makes you long for the camaraderie of teammates because the lone dogwalker in the nearby playground is woefully unaware of the task at hand.

I crouch down before my last 200m trying in vain to ease the tightness out of my right calf. I take my gloved hands and rub the muscle for warmth before shaking my legs nervously, cracking my back one last time, and jogging to the start line. Whoosh! I pounce off the line in utter silence and feel like I’m absolutely flying around the curve. If I’d been a cartoon, my head would’ve taken a few seconds to catch up to my surprisingly springy legs. Before my brain can register the burning in my calves and core muscles the 200m line appears from the darkness and I flail a wild right arm across my body to hit the split. One second faster than pace. 

FIST PUMP.

There it was. I reflexively fist-pumped in triumph over a 37 second 200m interval. In that moment it didn’t matter that I used to run 400’s faster than that pace or that it’s a full 5 seconds slower than I used to run 200’s or even that it’s slower than my PR 800 pace. For a flash I was transported back to a time with less self-doubt. A time when working harder made me faster. A time when I believed deeply and without apology. As I jogged my cooldown back to campus and the lab I thought to myself: This can happen. Inch by inch.

Sincerely,

Robyn “inches of progress” Runner

Cheers to the chase

Not every goal will be met nor will every dream be realized, but it is the chase that makes life worth living.

As of Turkey day, I had been running for 9 weeks post-injury. As planned, I built mileage slowly and actually followed the 10% rule. Importantly, I held back and haven't attempted anything faster than tempo pace. That said, the number of "workouts" or more accurately, "up tempo runs", could be counted on one hand. 

1xmile @ 6:55

5k @ 6:45

2x10min @ 6:55

7,5,3,1 min @ 7:00

For mileage, my leg held up for a robust week of 52miles averaging just under 8:00 pace and all on a crazy work week. 

~Off to the races! ~

This year it was unseasonably warm for thanksgiving. The family rode the gravy train to a bunch of speedy times at the seacoast rotary turkey trot in Portsmouth. Bro ran a PR. Pa dipped under 7:00 pace at 60 years old. Ma restrained her racing blood and cruised in under 22 without so much as breaking a sweat. And I surprisingly managed to crank out a sub 20 performance (19:53) off of the "speedwork" listed above and another hellish work week. Considering this is technically only my 4th time under 20 - how'd that happen? - I'm thinking I'm onto something and therefore staying with the hip rehab (Myrtle hip exercises) + mileage for another block and sticking to the extra extra extra conservative reinstatement of speedwork. 

For perspective, my highest mileage week ever was in 2010 at 55, back when I was carefree and relatively injury-naive pre-stress fracture. I have tried various times to increase to that point but have been derailed by injury over and over. It felt like I'd defined my mileage ceiling and it was disappointingly low. It still might be, but the hip and core rehab have been tremendously helpful, so maybe it's different this time. 

The 3 weeks of mileage after thanksgiving are scheduled for 52, 57, 62...

I hit the 57 mark this week which makes for both a longest mileage week ever and longest run ever (14.3). I'm still feeling great and most of the work feels like quality miles and not too strenuous.

Stay tuned for how my body and mind holds out venturing into uncharted waters of 60+. 

Sincerely, 

Robyn "hare, taking a page from tortoise" Runner

Perhaps the most telling part of this picture is the dark scar on my knee from back in September.
Very thankful that my training has healed faster than my skin.

When rest doesn't repair

When rest doesn't repair. It's something we as runners dread -time off for an injury. But it's also something we assume is a problem-solver. Unfortunately, some of us learn the painful way (pun intended) that rest is not synonymous with repair. 

It's been a while since I've posted. It's also been a while since I've been able to run regularly. This past spring I was training for outdoor track (1500m) but became derailed by a nagging lateral leg pain. Not typical IT band, but more of a traveling tightness between my outer thigh, hamstring, and hip. 

I took to the foam roller, ice packs, tennis balls, lacrosse balls, massage, chiropractors, rehab hip/core exercises - but nothing helped. Finally deciding that it was severe enough to warrant time off from training, I stopped for a week in July. No change. Instead, the tightness gradually turned into constant pins and needles as well. I did whatever I could over the summer to figure out what was going wrong to no avail. The only thing that I was sure of was that not moving made it worse. The occasional crippling shooting pains and the constant pins and needles frustrated and exhausted me. I couldn't sleep, couldn't find a comfortable sitting position, and most importantly, couldn't get a moment of stress relief by popping out for a run. 

I'd had enough, I decided that if I wasn't going to get any better with the diligent rehab, I might as well just be running while I figure out this injury. I started running again and one night took a nasty fall because my injured leg decided not to lift up mid stride. One watermelon-sized knee later, I was held up from running for 2 more weeks.  Luckily the damage was superficial and my tendons and bones were unscathed.

Sunny morning run at Marine Bio Lab in Woods Hole

Now it's 3 months since I stopped training, and the swollen bursa below my knee had reduced enough to allow my kneecap back in its regular position, so I started out cautiously. I should mention that several visits to my chiropractor were sprinkled in there and the pins and needles feeling had almost subsided, with no change in the tightness feeling. I built up gradually and have finally reached a point where I feel like I'm really running again. And amazingly, the tightness in my leg is inching (millimetering?) towards feeling normal, it's probably about 25% better than it was when I stopped running back in July. I have a partner in crime - of running and science- in Diana who has also been coming back from injuries. It's nice to have both of us out there again and this morning we had a fantastic beach run in Woods Hole that was delightfully warmer than when we ran there earlier in January!

We finally figured out how to not look directly into the sun.

Anyway, I'm excited to be in a state of repair and getting to the point where I can run long enough for it to tire me out.  I've been very good about containing my excitement and I'm not allowed on the track for a while yet. Although I often find myself daydreaming about track workouts. Who knew that I found so much comfort in discomfort? It seems I'm happiest when I get to put my body through the physical discomfort that is training. I've known this for a long time, but sometimes a long struggle can make you question that again. 

Looks like I'm still head over spikes for this running thing...

Until next time,

Robyn "spikes over heels" Runner

Runcationing

It's true, the best and fastest way to explore a new place is by running. Unfortunately, I can't stand running with my phone so usually the cool places I visit go undocumented. Earlier this summer I was in Newport, RI for the first time and enjoyed a run/hop/skip along the cliff walk. Unfortunately, no T Swift sightings. Ran to something called Purgatory Chasm, wicked cool spot on the ocean, wish I'd brought a camera for that one. I was there for a scientific conference, so I also went for a walk on the cliff walk (what a crazy notion) with some colleagues and took pictures then. The views were incredible...

Newport Cliff Walk

This past weekend I was in beautiful Bar Harbor for a quick vacation with Ben's extended family. We ran around Eagle Lake on Saturday which brought back all sorts of memories for me;  huffing up the hills in my one-speed Huffy back in the day with my family, the final "long run" (it's 6 miles) we took the campers on for Colby XC camp, doing LTP with friends after said long run, dangerously hurdling the gates with terrible form, and chatting with the sub-4 miler crew of guys filming a documentary up there. I've been battling a hamstring/IT band issue for about 6wks now (although pretended it was fine the first 4 of 6), so I and Ben's brother opted for rental bikes Sunday and accompanied Ben on his long run. After biking to the trailhead, we set off. All was rainbows and butterflies and fun downhills until we started going up. And up. And up. Turns out we picked a loop that included going up Sargent mountain and we ended up on continuous incline for 2 miles. Woof. Jumping on a bike for the first time in a year should not have involved climbing a mountain. We didn't manage to get sunshine for either of the days we were there but it was serene and wonderful as always. Glad to get this healthy dose of trails and nature.

Bubble Pond

View from our room at the Bar Harbor Inn

Eagle Lake

Until next time,
Robyn "running wild" Runner

Run to be Fast.

So I should start off by saying that I can't believe I have not posted in 2 months, it felt like two weeks. The reason (and I think it's a good one) is that I was suffering through a grueling 2 months of graduate coursework compressed down into half a semester. I got some really good training in this spring and passed my big comprehensive exam, but not much else! Call me Hermit. 

Anyway, I'm glad to be back and what follows is some introspection about training... 

There were two recent instances that caused me to really reflect on the little voice that tells you to quit. The first was at the MIT track when I was solidly hitting my - albeit slower than desired - paces. These past few years it's been rare for me to make it through a whole workout, much less be able to maintain even pacing through reps. Most of this was out of my control from injury, asthma, or sickness. But on this warm tuesday night I could have called it quits at two sets. After all, I wasn't going as fast as I thought I was capable of at this point in my training schedule. But instead I took my full recovery jog and started into the third set, legs aching, face hot, and came out on the other side feeling accomplished. 

The second instance that called my attention to the anti-motivation devil on my shoulder was, surprisingly, a shout from a homeless man. During what was a pleasant run around Boston with Ben ended in annoyance after this man shouted at me "you don't need to keep running, you already look good". It peeved me because 1) getting catcalled is one of those frustrating and sometimes frightening realities of being a female runner and 2) I don't run to look good, my motivations are so much deeper and to assume that I'm only out there for superficial reasons is an icy insult to any runner. There is such a deeply entrenched social stereotype about women logging miles to chase impossible beauty standards. Some days I wish I could wear a t-shirt that screams "I'm running to be fast, not skinny!". But, sigh, I'll have to settle for giving the dirtiest looks (and the occasional snot rocket) in the direction of those irritating catcallers.

Recently I've come to realize that I had become too close of friends with the little voice in my head telling me to "take it easy". I get it. Not so long ago I ignored the voice telling me "you're too sick to work", but I succumbed to the pressure to work despite being sick, and got pneumonia. Before that it was "your shins are so sensitive, stop running!", but I convinced that voice that I just needed some soft trails. That I needed some cross-training and stretching. That I was standing up too much. And then, that I needed to only run on workout days and races, it was only a tibial stress reaction (read: pre-fracture) after all. And then, 1.5 track seasons later, the little voice screamed "if you won't listen to me, I'm gonna blow your calf up to the size of a grapefruit!". It did. And I listened. Crutches, a boot, some doctor appointments and lots of rehab later, I was back.

It wasn't all a loss; I gained the superb ability to listen to the warning signs. Nagging pains are not to be ignored and this led to some good things. Stretching! Icing! Hip strengthening! Proper form! But beyond that, the little voice told me when I needed a rest day, a shorter lift, to skip that last set, that last mile, that last push which turns you from a mediocre runner to a fast runner. 

Hold up! That last one is exactly what I'm trying to do. Run fast! Guess what little voice, your reign is over. Sure, I'll take your advice, but it's gonna have to swim through the boiling fury that is my racing blood. If your message is strong enough, I'll listen. If not, well, hold on for the ride because I'm not slowing down.

4x400m NE DIII's 2010

Sincerely,
Robyn "can't stop won't stop" Runner

Life Update (& Race Recap): WCRC 4 Miler

4 years 11 months 4 days.
That's how long I've waited to say these words: I ran a PR. It's true, I could have earned a college degree faster than I was able to improve on a single one of my personal bests in any event.

Which is why I can now officially retire from competitive running with a clear mind.

The last time I ran a personal best was in the 1500m at NESCAC outdoor championships on April 24th, 2010. I came so close senior year to setting a PR in the 1000m during indoor track. So close in fact, that you might have to put an asterisk next to that 4yr mark. I actually ran my exact PR to the hundredth of a second (3:09.77), but a tie is not a better time, so the drought went on until now.
Don't worry readers, I'll still post on the blog about my new run for fun life!











Oh and if you actually believed that I'm retiring, HA. APRIL FOOL'S to you, you big fool!

6 and 1/2 days on Earth

I used to live on Earth 6 and a half days of the week. The remaining half day was spent absorbed in the fuzzy haze that was race day. With a stare that could pierce a brick wall, I was transported to that floating otherworldly reality where burning competitiveness pumped through my veins. I could give off the impression that I was there talking with you, but you were really getting autopilot responses while I envisioned the crowd-muffling sensation of going race mode. I wasn't always this way.  One time I almost napped through the start of a high school track race. I wasn't serious yet, I knew the joy of running, but had not the need for speed ingrained into my bones, my very being.When I was younger my pre-race routine was somewhat less finicky; I avoided eating Cheese Nips, the one food I threw up during a race, which falls somewhat short of the transcendental trance I was apt to be found in on any given Saturday morning during college.

Some days now I'll daydream about racing during a training run. To the point that I'll catch myself making faces despite the fact that I'm doing 8 minute miles. I have to snap myself out of it so that I don't a) run into the front of the treadmill or b) get lost. Both of which have happened more than I like to admit. 

Now the cloud came not from a sense of nervousness or fear. Races were not life or death, make or break. But, like getting into a good book, I loved the feeling of being completely absorbed. The other 6.5 days of the week my brain is like an overexcited puppy with ADD stuck on a runaway freight train. Here, on race day, I knew exactly what I wanted, what I needed to do, and how I wanted to feel. The simplicity and clarity of it all is therapeutic. A chance for me to release all of the pent up fears, dreams, and frustrations in a channeled display of insanity. For in the end it came down to one thing, putting your everything on the line.  There aren't too many things that can make you, in the moment, know unequivocally that there is only one thing you want. The line. 

"The gun goes off and everything changes...the world changes...and nothing else really matters"

Captured in my natural habitat
(photo: M.Gouzie)

This post was inspired by my second time reading the book "Pain" by Dan Middleman. A good read if you're on the lookout for running novels.

~Robyn "race cadet" Runner

Friday Favorites

It’s Friday! Time for a compilation of some of our recent favorite things.

Rachel

Favorite gear: Oiselle’s Wazzie Wool Baselayer in geofast red. So comfortable and warm. It’s been my go-to in these frigid temps when I just can’t stand the dreadmill anymore

Favorite run: a 9 mile loop in the neighboring town. Rolling rural roads and beautiful views.

Favorite song: Outside- Calvin Harris ft. Ellie Goulding

Favorite Instagram: Runnersloveyoga. Her posts remind me to slow down, stretch out, and work on my strength in order to improve my running.

Robyn  

Favorite run: 9.4mi loop around the Charles from my apartment, past Harvard and back on the BU side of the river

Favorite superset: 3 x [10 squat rack, 20 roman chair back extensions, 10 straight arm pull downs]

Favorite quote (of the week): “When you walk, one foot is always on the ground. When you run, most of the time you are actually airborne. For example: a 6-foot-tall runner with feet about 1 foot long was found to take 1,250 steps while running 8-minute miles. Thus, while covering 1 mile—5,280 feet—he was in touch with the ground for 1,250 feet and airborne for 4,030 feet.

Put another way, he was in the air for 76% of the time. So don’t think of it as a 10-mile run. Think of it as 7 miles of flying.” -Paul Richardson

Favorite Kick: Brenda Martinez (and Team USA) to win the DMR and set a new World Record.

January Jogs

Whatever happened to JanPlan? I seem to be enduring all the bad weather without the joys of being on Mayflower Hill with little responsibility. Jokes on you, cause I'm still a student and have had some fun January adventures. I started off the month with some neuroanatomy classes with the med students. Then, an 8 day adventure on the Cape! 8 full days of science camp! In the middle of January! The best time to be on the beach!
 >>> Disclaimer: some of the previous statements were facetious. Take your pick. <<<

Given our roughly 9am-10pm schedule, I was forced to run in the mornings. Blechhhhhhhhh
But, I made the most of it. I started off the trip by being blown backwards by 40mph winds. I managed to avoid the waves crashing over the storm walls. You'd think that was the most exciting run I had, but you're wrong! I also got into a standoff with two foxes. I arm wrestled one while putting the other into a headlock until they ran away. (Or maybe I yelled and clapped my hands like a fool until they ran off, most likely raising their little fox eyebrows at me). I have no proof of the fight, so you're gonna have to take my word for it. Anyways, I managed to bring my phone out on the very last morning and snap some pictures.

Proof I ran on the beach in January

Sometimes it's fun to look back

The other major development of January was me finally giving in and seeing a doctor about my asthma, which had become intolerable, incessant, and a huge pain in my...chest. I celebrated my first indoor workout that didn't result in a wheezing fest by sending a ridiculously over-excited snapchat, picture below...

Oh and there was also this big snowstorm that happened recently. Dunno if you'd heard about it, but it was kind of a big deal. Naturally, I went for a run in it. No excuses. Some guy even took a picture of me running, a little creepy, but I was ok with it.

Running in Boston Commons during Blizzard Juno

At least it was pretty. 

Thanks for reading! I hope that my ridiculous selfies haven't deterred you yet. I seriously need more running buddies so that I can stop looking like such a weirdo!

Sincerely,

Robyn "back on track" Runner

Race Recap: Seacoast Turkey Trot

Now that my family's running rank order is back in place (Kevin, Robyn, Mom, Dad), and with Kevin beating me by 2 minutes instead of 30 seconds, I'm feeling good about things. Although my 5K times over the last several months don't really reflect much of a change in my fitness, trust me, a lot has changed. I really don't mind that I keep hovering around 20:30 for 5K despite getting in better shape. There are a few reasons for that...

1. I feel good running! Sounds dumb, but I have not felt good running, lifting, walking, speedworking, or racing for months (a full year even?).
2. My asthma has returned to a manageable level.
3. I'm back on the track and starting to feel fast again. <3 track
4. I always always always plateau for ever and then have a huge breakthrough. Fingers crossed that's coming this indoor season.

I broke my 'sponsorship' rules and didn't wear anything LOCO at the turkey trot, opting for some classic Colby gear instead. Also, felt the strong urge to go ninja that morning. My actual race goal, no joke, was to run faster than Kat's marathon pace from Philadelphia. Which I probably would have done if the roads weren't so slick from the snowstorm, I was a few seconds too slow. Mad props/spirit fingers/snaps to her for keeping that up for 26.2; I'll stick with my 3.1 for now. Also, I'm not going to bother even recapping the Philadelphia marathon on here, if you know at least one runner from the New England area, you've definitely already heard all about the amazing feat accomplished by Dan Vassallo. I can't explain how incredible it was to be there and witness that race, surely will be one of my favorite running memories for years to come.
With that, I'm very thankful this year for having fast friends, of both the speedy and steadfast variety. (pun intended, gosh where do I come up with these things?)

Trotted my way to a decent time and a more than decent meal on Thursday.

Sincerely,
Robyn "wishing the water stops were gravy stops" Runner

P.S. Stay tuned for my post-collegiate track debut TBD at a December mini-meet at BU!

Indoor training, quada's, and a bad pun

I goo-PhD (goofed, get it?) and have not blogged in a while since starting my PhD has kept me extra busy. Well, I submitted my first grant application tonight, and so I'm back!

A lot has gone on in my life since the last time I wrote. Some good, some challenging. For the sake of optimism, I'll fill you in on mostly the good stuff! First, my lungs have made their 100% recovery from pneumonia based on lack of chest pain in recent races (and verified by an x-ray). Second, I've transitioned out of base building and have started speed work for indoor track season!

I would be greatly remiss if I did not share with you some pieces written about my aunt who battled pancreatic cancer. She was a tough cookie and we're gonna miss her. Now, every time I log a mile, half, quarter, quarter workout, you'll know I was digging deep for her inspiration.
Links:
Washington Times - Quada Quada bench
Coloradoan story

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
My training plan for the year is going to focus a lot on longer speed. I think I tend to get sucked into doing shorter repeats and playing with less recovery, more repeats, ladders, etc. But to be perfectly honest with myself (and you) I was doing these last winter because they are easier for me. What I really need in order to get fast at the mile is to do the killer 800 workouts à la Deb 2009. A.K.A. attempt (and fail) to run 4 x 800m at 5 seconds faster than goal mile pace. Which means if I want to get to low 5:xx this season, I need to be able to do 800 repeats in about 2:30. Yeah, 2:30. Also known as the typical pace I used to race in any given mid-season 4x800. No big. So how am I going to go about getting down to that pace in workouts? Well, I'm going to stop shying away from longer repeats, meaning 1600,1200, 1000 is something I may have to face, and like it. And those ridiculously fun 200's? Those will be my reward when I'm in killer shape in 2-3 months. And 400's, those will be a tack-on if I'm feeling good that day.

On another topic, it's been a Colby-filled summer and autumn. Moving back to New England has been great and oh how I missed running with people! From meeting up with people over the summer, seeing a horde of mules at the extra rainy Open NE's at Franklin park, an epic 40mph wind track workout with Kat, to pacing some miles of the LOCO marathon with Kate, it's been so much fun. Really looking forward to more mule encounters coming up.

The matching outfits was unintentional, but maybe it was the key to our perfect 7:25 pacing for some Boston marathon qualifier hopefuls! (or it could have been our incessant chatting that kept the group distracted)

Until next time,
Robyn "track is back" Runner

Race Recap: 5K PurpleStride DC (Pancreatic Cancer Fundraiser)

Even though I've been feeling reluctant to admit that I did not have a very fantastic race, or even a mediocre race, a couple of weekends ago, it wasn't the reason I hadn't blogged. The real (and more legitimate) reason is that I've been working my buns off all month. And TODAY was my LAST DAY of work! In my sleep-deprived delirium, and as procrastination of packing for the big move in 36h, I'll give a brief update...

I raced, I attempted to break 19, I didn't break 20. Ooops. Turns out that my 60+ hour weeks seemed to win over my carefully calculated and perfect training peak and taper. No worries though, I can tell that I am actually in fantastic shape and as soon as I get some consecutive nights of sleep I'll be chasing that goal again. This time in cooler New England temperatures. The best part of that day was knowing that I had reached and surpassed my fundraising goals with the help of friends, family, and friends of friends. It was a great event for pancreatic cancer fundraising efforts and I was happy to be a part of it for the second year in a row.

On top of all of that, I got to experience the most awkward high-five of my life, thanks to an enthusiastic photographer who doesn't understand that nerdy boys are terrible at giving high-fives when forced.

So, should we just keep our hands touching?
No rush, this isn't uncomfortable or anything

Am I taller?

Race Recap: Columbia Remembrance Day 5k

It's 2-for-1 week on our blog! AKA I finally write something and stop leaving all the slack to Rachel the superior blogger. Let's hope that her blogging skills help her in joining the Oiselle family (good luck!)

Yesterday a miracle happened. The stars, planets, sun, and every dust mite aligned in some sort of fortunate accident and I had both the weekend AND the federal holiday off! (You'd think that I'd work fewer federal holidays given that I work for the federal government...)

With just about everyone I know scattering off to the beach for the long weekend, my only plans involved running. To kick off the weekend, I had a delightful run with the one and only Morgan -squirrel aficionado and law school year 1 survivor - around the National Mall. It was the end of a 44mi week (hey that's a lot for my mid-D legs!) and I was really feeling the fatigue. On Monday morning I dragged myself out of bed extra early to do a little local 5k in Columbia, MD. It was 75 and humid with some hills in mile 2 but nothing drastic. Didn't have a good idea of how this would go, but I was hopeful that I'd run something around 20 flat. Took it out quicker than I knew I'd be able to sustain: on purpose. Coach Dad suggested going out at 6 flat and seeing how far I'd make it. I went with this but opted  for a bit slower 6:15. Pretty much totally ran out of gas at about 1.5mi, so the rest of the race was quite miserable/embarrassing and no kick to be spoken of. This is what I like to call a "character building day". In the end, ran something around 20:45, won $35 for my age group, so I broke even and got my first race back out of the way. What I learned from this is that I definitely need to nudge that pain threshold over the next few weeks, I've gotten soft over the past (too many) months it's been since I was seriously training and racing.

Random note: thought I had some Columbia stalkers out there after hearing several people cheering for Robyn. I decided about halfway through the race that the woman running with me must also be a "Robyn" because the only person I know in Columbia is my boss and none of these people had an Israeli accent. She was indeed named Robyn, and with a Y!

Coming soon: Seltzer Intervals or "Lessons on how to scare people off the track"

Standing up against pancreatic cancer - Welzel Strong

Dear friends and readers,

I wish I could write you with better news, but unfortunately that is not the case this time. Just a few weeks back we found out that my goofy, thick-Boston accented, marathon ace Aunt Jane has pancreatic cancer. It certainly wasn’t what I expected to hear that afternoon, and the feeling of déjà vu was unpleasant and unnerving. You see, several years ago, my mom got the same phone call about her brother, my uncle Andy, who eventually lost his battle with pancreatic cancer. Thus, this diagnosis is a double-whammy for my family. Pancreatic cancer can be genetic, and having two siblings in a family afflicted means that we need to jump into action for genetic screening and perhaps routine monitoring for the rest of us. You better believe that the first thing I did after finding out was to pull up PubMed and start researching the success rates of treatment, stats on increased risk for familial inheritance, the latest in screening options, and success of early detection. I won’t lie and say the numbers are favorable…

While the odds are against us, I know that if anyone can fight this, it’s Jane. She certainly has everything that can work for her, working for her. After all, if anyone is going to stand up to cancer, it’s going to be a Welzel. (Long-running family joke that Welzels regularly refuse to sit and would rather stand: maybe restless leg syndrome is hereditary too). Besides, this wouldn't be the first time Jane has overcome extraordinary odds. First of all, she qualified and ran in 5 U.S. Olympic marathon trials.  Not impressed yet? She broke her neck in a terrible car accident in between Olympic trials #1 and #2, and spent three months in a cast. I can still recall some hilarious stories my mom told me of taking full upper-body cast Jane out for walks: with a few falls and ensuing hilarity in trying to get back up since her legs still were remembering how to function. And that’s only a drop in the sea of the endless “crazy Aunt Jane” stories (like the time she spent a night in a tree after being chased on a run by a moose during mating season, or when she taught my little cousin Kate an age-inappropriate catch-phrase:  “kick-ass Kate”, or the shorts with fake plastic butts that she wears with her friends to  trick people into thinking they are being mooned). In her professional life, she is up against another difficult statistic – the prevalence of eating disorders in athletes. As a psychotherapist, she specializes in counseling those with eating disorders. My point is, look up resilience in the dictionary and don’t be surprised to see a Welzel standing there (yep, still not sitting!).

I am telling you all of this because in support of my entire family for what we have been through, what we’re going through, and the future unknown challenges, I am fundraising money for pancreatic research and awareness. As a scientist, I know first hand the impact that public awareness can have on funding levels. The most fitting way that I can see to try to help my family is through running: on June 14^th, I will be toeing the line for the second time at the PurpleStride 5K in Washington D.C.. I ran this race last year  in honor of Uncle Andy and in my first time breaking 20 minutes on the roads. Little did I know just how much more special this race would feel to me one year later. And that is why, despite all the odds against me (being out of shape from having pneumonia in February and an unrelenting work schedule), I am going to attempt to break 19 minutes for the first time at this race. Besides, what’s post-pneumonia lung compared to a broken neck? In these next two months, I’m going to be training “Welzel Strong” to beat the odds at this race. I'd love to have anyone who lives nearby join me!

Thanks for reading my story! I hope you will consider donating a few bucks to my fundraising page if you can afford it. The link to donate is below.

http://purplestride.kintera.org/dc/welzel_strong

Jane - nicknamed her tumor "Pigpen", from Peanuts, for when she beats it, the dust will settle.
(unlike her opponents, who she left in the dust)

Pacers for Marathons & World Records

Remember back in 2011 when they decided that women’s world records that were performed with male pacers were no longer recognized? Refresher article if not:

http://www.nytimes.com/2011/09/22/sports/for-womens-road-records-only-women-only-races-will-count.html?_r=0

Wellll, I’m whistle-blowing a double standard here. To be honest, I was mildly annoyed back in 2011 about this but had long since forgotten about it. When I heard that Haile Gebrselassie was pacing the 2014 London Marathon, I thought aha!, a great point to support my side of the debate.  Yes, I acknowledge that he’s not going the whole way and he’s on the older side, but Geb is a world-class runner and it would be hard to argue that his pacing contribution during the first 30k (18mi) is insignificant. Just something to think about when we glorify the “assistance” of a pacer for women’s marathoning  simply because they can go the whole race when men also have pacers for nearly ¾ of the race.

Side note for fellow running book lovers, check out The Greatest: The Haile Gebrselassie Story

Pneumonia update:

Survived 4 days of skiing with Ben, stopping to catch my breath turned out to be a good time for pictures!

I went for a 3 mile jog today and it didn't kill me, a great surprise after struggling through two 9:00 miles last week. Feels great to be back on my feet.

ffffffrozen

Mont-Tremblant 

The Ever-Elusive Trifecta

Note: I actually wrote this post back in mid-January, but was distracted by visits from friends (yay Sarah and Colleen!), friends leaving (Abbott come back!), and interview preparations (yuck, business casual).

For some reason the phrase “ever-elusive” always make me think of one of my favorite Family Guy scenes: National Geographic special on Firetrucks. (Link below in case anyone has my same sense of humor)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UTYXgHTzvz0

But back to me (blogging makes me feel self-absorbed sometimes), the trifecta is a silly little thing that I use to define the major components of my life: running, research, relationships. I'm usually a solid 2 for 3 (you don't want to see me at 1/3). Yeah, yeah, I'm a perfectionist, you caught me. It’s funny because I used to get so frustrated chasing the trifecta but it seemed nearly impossible that the three could co-exist. I ran my best cross country and track times when I was an emotional wreck. I accomplished some incredible things in the lab while I was nursing/ignoring/healing a stress fracture and subsequently falling from the top to the bottom quarter of the cross-country team as a senior.

Which brings me to now: at this crossroads of injury-free training, a month of interviewing for PhD neuroscience programs, and family and friends rooting for me. Based on my trifecta theory, I start wondering where will it crack? My bet is on the running (it usually is). In this case it’s not a matter of being out-of-shape or injured, it’s my geographical disadvantage. What’s a girl gotta do to get into a race around here?!

I’ve been trying, unsuccessfully, to get on the track for nearly a month and a half now for a post-collegiate racing debut in the mile. Unfortunately, the running community down here in Balto is just so much sparser and there are practically no opportunities to race something shorter than a half. I tried to race at a U of Maryland Invitational but they “didn’t have space” for me. I call BS because I know an alum who was let in to race the men’s mile, but whatever. On the plus side, I feel like I’ve got the speed back in my legs and plan on trucking along until I can race (hopefully) in an outdoor meet in March/April.

OK – enough of my complaining. Having a lack of race opportunities is hardly cause for whining (and would be majorly insensitive of me given that my poor comrade is healing a broken leg right now). It’s just that my racing blood’s a boilin’ and I want nothing more than to get cranking on the oval. My consolation prize… it seems as though I bestowed upon Baltimore the gift of New England winter weather. Payback? I like to think so. 

Reflection on 2013, or, amusing things I wrote in my running log

Looking back on 2013 there were a lot of ups and downs in terms of training. I went from struggling to just run in January 2013 due to a mystery medical condition and eventually taking time off when most of my runs were ending in me in the fetal position on the treadmill, to looking at racing my first post-collegiate track meet in January 2014.  It certainly was a bit of an extended transition year out of college, but luckily that lent itself to me writing some weird stuff in my running log. Below are some samples of what happens when I write like no one's reading...

1/9/13

Feeling nostalgic for the killer group 3 mid-distance workout that was happening today at Colby, so I did one on my own on the treadmill. 1x800m @ 2:45. Got some funny looks, completely warranted...

2/11/13

Treadmill run, lots of abdominal pain today. Feel like I've tried the "rest and get better" theory for long enough with zero success and will be reverting back to the “ignore all pain signals” method

3/10/13

Slept 5hrs, worked 10hrs, ran 10mi. Take that, DC Doghead hangover...

3/22/13

Distractions prevented the execution of tonight's run.

3/27/13

Still not feeling the vibe at my new gym. Why would people annoy strangers with stupid conversations when they are clearly trying to work out? Meatheads.

4/2/2013 

Drove to Dundalk HS to try out their track….In other news, never returning to Dundalk EVER AGAIN, very sketchy.

5/20/13

the “no run – off” option should probably end in an exclamation point. Long day (6:40am-5:40pm) meant no running after work.

5/29/13

100% laziness. No regrets.

6/1/13

Wedding day run with Kat :) Hot and humid, saw some huge turkeys

10/2/13

Furlough day one (and only).

10/6/13 

No run: off!  Hansel, so hot right now.

11/1/13

unintentional tempo run. Suns out guns out on Nov 1st.!

11/2/13 

@NESCACS! Go Mules!

1/2/14

Nothing like starting out not-JanPlan with the infamous JanPlan repeat 800s workout all by yourself. Felt the cliff of the back of the treadmill on the last repeat as i drifted and faded away (that I had turned into a 400, which therefore turned into a 300). I'm getting too familiar with that emergency stop button, but at least it's fast.

2013 had too few CCXC reunions for my liking, hopefully 2014 can have more like this 10 mile relay race we did in August.