Strike That

Ignore the previous post... who in the world would give up marathoning???? I mean, you train for the actual week of the marathon... you get to eat all the bread and pasta you want (I'm in Heaven), you only work out twice... I mean what's not to love? The only sacrifice is no alcohol!

Yeah, marathon #2 = 2 days and some change!

This and That

Not that anyone ever reads this thing, but it's nice to vent and talk out loud, or talk cyberlly... whatever, you know what I mean.

So, only a few more weeks until I have marathon #2 under my belt. This go round has truly made me realize that the full is totally boring. By mile 14/15 I'm bored... I can't think of anything else to think of to keep my mind off what I'm actually doing. I'm hoping for a good run in a few weeks, so I can settle down to mastering the half marathon (13.1 miles). I can actually run a full half and feel pretty good when I'm done.

I mean, running is supposed to fun. After finishing 18 miles on Saturday, I was not having fun. I could barely walk up my stairs, I have to go sit for 20 minutes in a tub full of cold water and ice cubes. Explain to me where that is fun??? However, the idea of completing a marathon, not to mention 2, is a concept that's still hard to grasp. The sense of achievement alone is pretty cool. That will be hard to let go, however, I look forward to having my Friday evenings back and being able to sleep later than 5:00am on a Saturday morning.

Sorry for the rambling, just some thoughts after my run on Saturday!

Website

For those of you being directed here from my email... I am so sorry! The link I forwarded in my email was incorrect... one to many letters. The actual address is www.active.com/donate/tnttn/tempied.

Thank you for your support!
tjd

Half Marathon on my own

Well, it was a good day... considering.

I got lucky and managed to find a transfer bib into the sold out Houston Aramco Half Marathon. I wasn't prepared AT ALL. The most I had run since my last marathon (April '07) was 8 miles. But, I figured I was used to training in the hills of Tennessee and I was going to run a 13.1 mile course that was flat as a flither in comparison. And indeed it was. I felt good until mile 7, started to tire, walked a hair and still managed to finish with a personal best of 2:17. The weather was perfect, the breeze felt great and I was thankful for no humidity.

This was my first long race on my own... no friends, no coaches, no familiar faces. Just me. And I gotta tell ya... it was nice. I slowed down when I wanted to, I sped up when I wanted to, I didn't worry with talking to people, except for the 2 "War Eagle" shout-outs I gave to spectators donning their orange and blue in Houston. It was a great experience. I'm curious what my final time would have been had I been better prepared?

As Garrett and I discussed... this was more of a test run to see how my IT band held up. Apparently, I am okay so far. No major knee pain, except for aches and pains due to running on so much concrete.

Good times in Houston! Thanks Marge and Garrett for fighting the cold and the 4:30am alarm clock! Y'all rock!

On the Road Again...

If this is your first time to visit my site, let me tell you about myself. My name is Tempie and I am a marathon runner. On April 28, 2007, I did something which I thought was unthinkable - I completed my first full marathon (26.2 miles) - the Country Music Marathon here in Nashville. I trained for 6 months and basically dedicated my life to the race and to the cause. After 7 months, 3 pairs of sneakers, enough miles logged to run to Florida and over $2000 raised to support the mission of the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society - and after a summer vacation, I'm at it again. I have begun training for my next full marathon - the 2008 Country Music Marathon. I'm scheduled to run to 1/2's between now and then, the '08 Houston 1/2 Marathon and the Tom King 1/2 here in Nashville.

It's a crazy notion, but I can't imagine my life without running.

Knowing that simply getting out and running a few miles (or 26) can go so far in the fight against cancer, is truly a humbling experience.

As with my first marathon, I will be training with the The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society's Team In Training, not only as a participate, but as a mentor. If you're not familiar with Team In Training, we generate sponsorships and donations that raise funds to help stop leukemia, lymphoma, Hodgkin's and myeloma, as well as help support those families who are coping with these illnesses. As a mentor, I'll be in a role to help other first-timers make it through the season and achieve their goal.

As my motivation and as a constant reminder of how difficult it is to deal with cancer, I will be running in honor of my aunt, who, last spring was diagnosed with breast cancer, and my grandmother who is a breast cancer survivor. They will be my heroes, my inspiration and my drive. And they, like so many others, need our help to cross the ultimate finish line - finding a cure.

Let's find a cure - together. Please make a donation in honor or in memory of anyone you may know who has dealt with the constant trials and tribulations of cancer and help make a difference.

Thanks for your support, and, remember, all donations are tax-deductible!!

www.active.com/donate/tnttn/tempied

We don't have to have surgery.

I got the results from my MRI today!! The doctor's first words were, "Well,
we don't have to do surgery!" Thankfully, the MRI didn't show any tears.
He did see a small cyst on the back of my knee, but nothing I needed to worry about.
The final diagnosis was tendonitis brought on by issues with my IT band. [Don't
I sound like a real athlete??]

At any rate, the funny thing. He recommended I get a cortisone injection... he said
with that, we can both say, "we've done all we can do". So, I get
laid up on the table, got my knee ready, he starts pressing around, asks where it
hurts most, then I feel this cold spray, 2 stings and he's done... except...
that was the local anesthesia!!! He's gone about 5 minutes then comes back with
this huge syringe. To myself, I'm like, "Crap, I thought we were done!"
Not long after that, I'm completely passed out... Yeah, I fainted! Will anything
ever change?

Anyway, he said "give it a week and I should be running again." He said
to pay extra close attention to that tendon and give it some TLC and with luck I
won't have the problem again. So, now that I've basically been given the clear.
I plan to do some yoga and walk this week, then try and run next week. Hopefully,
I'll be running a 5K in June and start training for another full marathon in
January. 

It's Over

Well, here goes.

It wasn't a great performance, it wasn't a good performance, it sure as hell wasn't pretty, but I have a medal and I crossed the finish line.

At mile 15, something popped in my knee. At mile 16, I spent 30 minutes at a medical station being iced and getting wrapped up. But, you know me being hard headed... I had worked too hard to not finish, so I took my jacked up knee and we finished the last 10.2 miles. I didn't run a marathon, but I did complete a marathon.

Am I done, no. Will I do it again, yes! I'm in the best shape of my life and I refuse to let this minor set back stop me. I may have to take a few weeks off, but it's probably best. I've really beat myself up over the past 6 months and my poor ole body could use a little R&R.

I'm actually going to San Francisco to run the Nike Women's 1/2 marathon in October. Then I'm contemplating running with LLS again to train for the PF Changs Rock n Roll marathon in Phoenix in January. We'll see.

As for the knee. I went to see a sports med doctor and got some x-rays taken and I have an MRI set up for later this week. They think I may have torn my meniscus, but nothing to major that won't heal on it's on. We all agreed it would be best to find out the root of the problem in order to find ways to prevent it in the future.

Thanks again for everything. Check back every now and again... this blog thing was pretty cool.