Double Digits

Before we proceed to the details of this week's happenings, here is a cool quote:

"Why aren't you signed up for the 401K?
I'd never be able to run that far." Scott Adams, Dilbert (4/2/01)

hah! gave me a good chuckle. Scott Adams and Dilbert are awesome. The former is a Haas alum. Go Bears!:)

I was very, very nervous Friday night and early saturday about this week's run. Reasons:

1. We are talking double digits - yes thats 10 miles. Remember, in June I could not even run 2 miles.

2. Stanford Dish - Those familiar with this terrain know thats its a hard hike. And I am supposed to run it?!? I got a preview of it the previous saturday on my 'On Your Own' run. I had decided then that if the weather remained hot, I would most likely skip this one.

But I ran. All the way. What a feeling! I started with Jen, Gina, Alan and gang around 7:45, quite late actually. The hills were hard, my legs were screaming and by the 4th mile, my stomach was grumbling. I had my first ever 'Gu' shot with water. Coming downhill was not as bad on my knees as I thought it would be - or perhaps I was just so happy that I wouldnt have to climb anymore steep inclines.

We had decided that we would go 8, but at the 8 mile turnaround, I decided I could go on a little longer. Plus I figured if I didnt keep going, I would obsess about it all week. The 10 mile turnaround came, I had my gummy bears and started on my way back to the finish. Captain Laura joined me for the last 1 mile - thanks to her I had a very strong finish. The 'Gu' works - espresso for me. I am going to take these around 4-5 miles on all the long runs.

Thats me - still smiling after the run. The hardest one so far, and yes the most memorable.

Thank you!!

Fundraising is a very important aspect of this experience. I'll be the first to admit that raising all this money seemed quite intimidating at the beginning. But as I started writing those emails, I realized that this was a great way to say hi to friends and family whom I havent talked to in a while. So that was an added incentive. I was able to get in touch with so many folks that I have come to know in the past 10 years. I have been amazed how supportive everyone has been of my effort. I truly appreciate all the encouragement everyone has given me. A very big thanks to the following individuals for bringing me so much closer to my fundraising goal. Your generosity is inspirational and very much appreciated by me and everyone at the leaukemia society.

Saurabh Agnihotri, Unnati Amin, Viva and Roger Bakshi, Tim Ball, Avijeet Banerjee, Rashmi Chandra, Kevin Cluggage, Vikas Desai, Nidheesh Dubey, Lily Fetterer, Andy Lee, Angela Makalintal, Jayashree Nagaraj, Vivek Pandey, Umesh Pillai, Abhijit Rele, Neha Shah, Ramesh Shankar, Heena Sharma, Deepak Sitaraman, Bhupi Sondhi, Rhonda Stieber, Piyush Tiwari, Nandini Upadhyay, Natalia Vainshtein, Tony Wang, Jennifer Wesenberg


Thanks again!!

8 Miles.....

Update for the week of July 15th

I was looking forward to this regional run for a couple of reasons:

Venue: Pillar Point Harbor in Half Moon Bay: http://www.smharbor.com/pillarpoint/

Distance: After sawyer's 6 mile, this was to be my longer run, 8 miles. For some reason I have had a big hangup about this number. I knew I would somehow manage 6, but 8 ?!? Beyond my imagination.


Recap:

I had had a knee pain all day friday due to a 5 mile thursday morning run. I almost decided not to go in today, but Pillar Point was too tempting to resist. Plus after hitting snooze three times, I was up and figured that even if couldnt run, the views and a couple of miles of walking would be worth it.

So I went and finished. The run started around 8:00 am and I was back by 9:40 or so. I started with Jocelyn's gang again and ran with them until the 3 mile point. I was mostly on my own from the aide station at 3 mile until the 4 mile turnaround and then back.

The good thing about this - I mostly ran as opposed to run-walk. The bad thing - its much harder mentally to run on your own, although the views were gorgeous and kept me going. Donna, my mentor, a lady in amazing shape met me on my way back and ran upto the finish line.

I felt really tired around 4 miles so decided to eat a bit of the bar I was carrying and drink lots of water. I have to be careful about this next time and will mostly carry some 'GU'.

Its Sunday evening and a couple of noteworthy things:
***I dont have any knee pain, due to some major icing action on saturday
***No headache - all that water that I am gulping down is working)

8 miles..done and gone, unbelievable, atleast to me. 10 miles...here I come.

What, When, Water

Yesterday I attended a nutrition clinic after my track workout. The clinic was hosted by Dr. Clyde Wilson of SMI. Quite an informative session, way too much info, I am still processing it. But the basic mantra to follow during any kind of training accoring to the doctor is: What, When and Water. What to eat, when to eat it and how to keep hydrated.

I liked the fact that he was very sure about his recommendations..very few ifs and buts. Everytime I read an article related to nutrition, there is a lot of open room for interpretation. Because of that I never know what the 'right' answer is. A few techniques that he recommended, which I have been kind of following were:

- Split your dinner: Have a small meal around six and then a huge salad 2 hours before bed. Drink lots of water to make sure the salad digests.

- Also split your breakfast: a pre and post workout split is good. I dont usually workout tin the morning, but nevertheless split my break fast. If I eat it all at once, I feel very full and sleepy. If I split it, it satisfies my cravings better.


Lots of other things as well, that I have to read before I can establish a good routine. But one thing is for sure, no holding back on salads at dinner. I bought a very tasty balsamic dressing yesterday that I plan to use with spinach, mushrooms, red onions and pepper for dinner tonite.

Dr. Wilson has a great website: http://www.drclydewilson.com/

Playing Catch-up

I have started blogging this experience rather late - into the 5th week of my training. Lets catch up.

Kickoff

I went to the TNT kickoff event in Redwood Shores with much skepticism and no plans of signing up. But after the event was convinced this was worth the effort. I signed up for the Mid-Peninsula team that meets in Stanford for track workouts.

Week 1, June 6th and June 10th

June 6th was the first track workout that included stretching and running on the Stanford tracks. Stanford track is an awesome place to run. The coaches introduced us to the stretch routine and also to core strengthening routine. Running a couple of miles was not that hard.

June 10th was the first regional run at Whisman Park in Mountain View. I signed up to run 2 miles, but was amazed when I finished 4, most of it running. Its the environment and support of other runners that got me through. I was tired and had a headache after the run. Realized that I needed to be very careful with water.

Week 2, June 13th and June 16th

Another good track workout, but I had to miss the regional run since I was attending my cousin Gaurav's engagement in Chicago.

Week 3, June 23rd

I ran with Jocelyn and others around the stanford area. We ran roughly 4.5 miles. Again I had a headache after the run.

Week 4, July 1st

Regional run at Sawyer Camp in San Mateo. I wanted to run 6 miles to increase my mileage. I started a bit late than the rest of the gang and ran the route with Helen. Helen kept talking and pacing us. I managed to finish the 6 miles in about an hour, which is awesome! I drank water throughout and only had a minor headache - so need more water.

Week 5, July 8th

I ran with Jocelyn and Ritu in Palo Alto Baylands. Good run, around 4.5 miles. No headhache, no knee pain, doing good!

Besides these runs, I have been cross training on the elliptical and also running alternate days on my own, around my home. Thats it for now. I will post weekly updates from now on.

To do it, or not to - that is the question!

I have recently signed up to run a marathon and have been training for the last month or so. The question that came to mind was and is still hanging is - why do it at all? Here is what I have considered so far as possible pros and cons of this undertaking:

Pros:

* Everyone is doing it - The popularity of these events is at an all time high. Lets face it, its the thing to do now-a-days. Tells a great story.

* For physical fitness - Runners are physically fit people. Most I have come across look great. Big plus.

* Good Cause - Team In training supports a great cause. Any fundraising for a this group connects you to a great group of people who are incredibly driven to support those in need.

Cons:

* Time Commitment - This is a big time commitment. With a job, home and a toddler, managing schedule is already quite challenging. This is an added task on a much crowded to-do list.

* Physical strain - the payoffs of running are accompanied by aches and pains. I have a bad left knee and have gone through physical therapy before. Am I really ready for this physically?

I have maintained a very skeptical attitude so far about this whole experience. One day at a time is what I have been telling myself. But you know, I am slowly beginning to have faith and now really feel that I can do this.

So what nailed it for me:

- It feels so darn good! Running gives me an incredible high during and after the process. Initially, the first mile or so is very difficult. I feel heavy and tentative, but once I have my rhythm, gosh it feels good!

- Team in Training mentors, coaches make up an incredible support system. For all my runs, I have had the support of so many people. I actually look forward to long runs where I can chat away with my team mates.

- It has been manageable, both physically and logistically so far. My husband has been a tremendous help at home and the coaches have helped me remain injury free so far.

So on with it. I am really going to do this.....