Finally Posted!

Official time: 2:40:29! Here are the stats:
Official Pace: 12:15
Age division rank: 76 / 96
Overall rank: 768 /1161
Gender Rank: 495 / 842

I am thrillled with the results. I can't imagine what they would have been if I had not been injured. Next year...I will own that course.

I just now know that I have to train in heat. I think that was one of the biggest downfalls. I had run 12 miles with the injured leg before...but it was in cool weather. The heat and I think some dehydration got the better of me and sped up the injury. Oh well...live and learn. Not too freaking shabby for my first attempt!

Still no official results

The results are posted for Friday's events so I am assuming that Saturday's events will be posted tomorrow. I really want to know the time.

As for my leg update...it is really freaking sore! Lots and lots and lots of icing. I honestly don't think there is a muscle in my body that doesn't hurt. Most of it is from some mild dehydration. I have gone through several bottles of powerade zero today to get my body weight back up. I was down 3 pounds this morning due to dehydration. The last time I stepped on the scale about 2 hours ago I was up to my pre race weight so that is an improvement.

My foot is not much better than my leg. Unlike the last time the pain really is very localized so I am assuming that it is a stress fracture. I am icing and resting that as well. There will be NO working out before surgery. I have to make sure that I am well hydrated before going in on Thursday. We will be going to a fun center for my birthday so I will be bowling and mini golfing but nothing too strenuous. I promise I am resting and taking care of myself!!!

Fat Chick to Athlete

I finished it in an unofficial 2:41:11 according to my i-pod. Race results have not been posted yet. I will update as soon as I have.

The run did not go as I had planned. I was not able to run the entire thing due to a MAJOR injury at mile 8. My leg is quite swollen...but I pushed through the pain as much as I could and slow jogged as much as possible. The achilles tendon is very sore and yes...I shed tears on the course from the pain. I also ALMOST threw up from the pain. The couse was AWFUL. I don't know how you get a circular course to be almost all uphill... but they did. We also started late and the last 5 miles are in the open...no shade and it was 89 degrees by the time I finished. However, I am still thrilled with my results. My ultimate goal was to be under 2:30...but that was pretty farfetched. Had I not had an injury...I would have easily made it. For the first 8 miles I was averaging a 10:33 min/mile. I would have EASILY been in under the time. However, even with walking part and the injury...I still made it in under my reasonable goal of 2:45. As I said before...I don't have the official results yet and I forgot to turn off my ipod so the time should be more like 2:40 something.

I am VERY pleased with the run. I was afraid that I would be disappointed in myself...but I am not...This is an AMAZING accomplishment. I am so proud of myself. I have not only overcome 105 extra pounds, but if you could feel the pain that I experienced through most of this run...you would understand why I couldnt' run the entire thing. The pain in my leg was so severe that at one point the aid station people suggested that they call a medic. Since my leg was not discolored or bruised I figured that the tendon had not torn and I was going to finish. I walked/limped as fast as I could and did run the last mile. That takes determination and guts.

I did it...I did it...I did it!

Final Tune UP

I went for a one mile run with DH tongiht. OMG...it felt so good. It was like eating an entire carrot cake after being on Taliban Atkins for months. (That is what my dad and I call it when we eat less than 5g of carbs a day!) There was a bit of pain in my knee, hip, and foot...but none in the tendon. I think I was just super sensitive to feeling any little thing.

I am so not a girly girl, but I do have to post what I am going to wear tomorrow. I have switched to a running skirt (it is actually a tennis skirt... again I wanna be like LJM!), a blue tank top, blue and white running socks, and a blue hair band. Got my hair cut yesterday so the hair band is new! I am going to be fashion diva out there. Well...except that my white compression garment to hold Jabba the Hut in place pokes out the bottom...and if I run fast enough and flap my arms the bat wings my just help me fly to the finish line. But other than that...I should look as HOT as the weather!

I will post here as soon as I get home from the half tomorrow. I know that we are going out to lunch at a local "drive in" as I get a free day tomorrow. I should burn off about 1500 calories depending on my pace. So on those days I pretty much let myself eat what I want. Apparently this place has one hell of a burger...and I am going to have one. Okay...I am going to have 1/4 of one. I guess they are HUGE and I still can't eat much...see post from earlier today.

Holy Crackers Batman

I am stuck...majorly stuck. Foamy, sliming, golf ball stuck. Make it go away! We are going on an hour here people!!!

WASA crackers look like cardboard, taste a little like cardboard when going down, and taste MAJORLY like cardboard when sitting in your esophagus. OUCHY!!!

Leg

My leg is feeling good. I didn't do anything yesterday. Today I am going to run 1 mile and then walk a few more just to keep the legs moving. 48 hours from now I will be in the middle of my half-marathon. I am so excited...and nervous. It is supposed to be 97 degrees here that day...with possible thunder showers! The race starts at 8AM so hopefully it will be cool until 10:45 which is when I should finish.

Injury...Again

So the tendon is acting up today...along with my left knee. So I am officially done with training. No more running between now and the race on Saturday. I will walk 3 miles everyday, but I will not be doing any running. I did get my 3 miles in today, but my leg was really tight when I got home. My knee hurt when I was coming up the stairs.

My stupid hyperventilating is back though...don't know what the hell is up with that.

Major Slacking

Before LJM bites my head off ;) I had better give an update.

1. RUNNING - I had a bit of a setback when I went and ran the course at the half-marathon. I pulled up after 8.57 miles with terrible pain in my left achilles tendon. I went to the doc right away and she said to ice it and stay off of it for a couple days and then do only short runs until the half-marathon. I probably could have run through the pain on actual race day, but I didn't want to push it on a training run. THis all happened Thursday. I took Friday and Saturday off and went for a 3.75 mile run yesterday. All seemed fine. Tendon and knees seem to be holding up. I did the elipitical for 1/2 hour today and then will run Tuesday, Wednesday, and possibly Thursday. I will take Friday off except for a short walk and then run the big one on Saturday.

2. WEIGHT - I am officially a normal BMI. I have weighed in since Saturday at 145. I am excited and frustrated. I guess if I keep losing weight it is fine, but at some point I have to be able to stop. I have not been good with my calories...I just can't eat that much food. I know...everyone wishes they had that problem! I have been under calories for the last 4 days.

3. MOOD - So I am on cymbalta now, which thankfully my insurance is covering (I only have to pay 20$) but I am not sure if I like it. I have no motivation to do anything. Maybe it is just summer vacation mode, but I really don't like this feeling. I am a go getter. I don't want to do anything but lay on the couch and bitch because I am bored. I do have a lot to do...I just don't want to do it. Case and point...my blog. I haven't updated for almost a week!

4. MONEY - Ahhhhh....this is the scary one. Thanks to the economy and the cost of fuel DH's last day at work is Friday. They are eliminating his position so he will get unemployment for a bit, but it is making life VERY tight right now. I found this out after I put the money down for my surgery (which he wouldn't have let me cancel anyways...love the guy!). So he has been job hunting for a week or so but hasn't found anything yet. I am trying to refinance my lapband surgery but I haven't had much luck on that front (I pay almost 700$ a month). I did get offered a position teaching at a local university for 5 Saturdays this fall so that will help ease the crunch some. We do have some money in savings that will buy us time and I am trying not to panic right now. I am not good at that!

I will be better at posting this week...promise. Maybe I will get some life back in me! I am not as tired today as I was last week. I think part of my problem was the fact that I was not getting much sleep the last couple weeks of school and that Cymbalta can cause drowsiness. I take it at night, but I think there is some lingering effects. I am usually ready for a nap right now, but I seem fine today. Keep your fingers crossed!

Get ready to gouge your eyes out

So as if the whole world did not already know, my surgery is set for July 3 at 7:30AM. I will have to be to the surgery center at 6:30. To the dismay of many around here, this will be an outpatient surgery and is scheduled to last 6 hours. Here is what the doc said yesterday.

1. I will have 2, (possibly 3) incisions. One that runs hip to hip (about 3/4 of the way back on the hip), 1 that runs vertically from groin to breast bone, and then possibly one that is horizontal just underneath the bra line. She won't know until she sees how much puckering there will be at the top.

2. She has no idea how much muscle repair I will need. She said she wouldn't know until she gets in there.

3. She may or may not move my port. It depends on how much of a fat pad there is between my port and the muscle. If there is not a lot, she will leave it. If there is a fair amount, then she will unstitch the port, remove the fat, and resecure the port to my muscle. Lovely...port pain again! She will not be changing the location of the port and has the complete support of my lap-band surgeon.

4. She will lipo the mons area and lift as well. This is being thrown in as a bonus. She said she is not going to charge me for the lipoing of the mons area because she didn't originally think I would need it, but now she thinks it would be better. She said it is not enough to justify recalculating the fees.

5. I will be receiving a pain pump that will last for 48 hours. She gave me the option of showing me how to remove it myself (WTH!) or to move up my post-op and come in on Monday and have her remove it. I opted for the second! I am not a biologist/doctor...that is what I pay them the big bucks for!

6. She is so excited that I am running the half-marathon before surgery because it will cause great circulation and put me in the best shape of my life. She was not concerned about the weightloss because of my muscle tone. She didn't want to see me losing a lot of weight just due to low calories and poor nutrition which can be a problem for healing. But after seeing the muscle tone in my arms and legs she is EXTREMELY confident in my ability to heal quickly.

They took a bunch of pictures and I got my prescriptions for surgery. They are all liquid as this was the only thing that my lap-band surgeon suggested. I did not want to get a pill stuck and be throwing up! So I will just gag from the flavor instead. Liquid pain meds and liquid antibiotics. Sounds like a party. I can sit in my recliner like chair with a straw and party umbrella in my medical cocktail and feel like I am sitting on the beach...with my new "bikini body"!

And now...what everyone has been waiting for... the pictures...as hideous as they may be!

Running Update

I have not been very good with the blogging lately. I am enjoying my vacation right now. Though as soon as DH is done with his game he is going to take my before pictures of my belly. Poor guy.

Anyways I ran 12 miles on Sunday...yep...the whole enchilada. It wasn't too bad. I finished in 2:22. Not too shabby of a time. There were a few hills at the campground that I ran at, but NONE compared to the hills on the half-marathon course. Yesterday I went and walked part of the course and CRAP!!!! There are a ton of hills, including about a .25 mile stretch that was pretty much completely uphill. So I am going to start hill training tomorrow. There is a butte that I am going to run (and hopefully not puke my guts out!) tomorrow. I am going to also try and run part of the course at least 3 times before the race. I figure if the first part is all uphill, maybe the last part will all be downhill!!!

So here are my graphs from the last 3 days.

5K run on Saturday 6/14. Finished in just over 31 minutes.

12 mile run on Sunday 6/15

Walking at the half-marathon course

Pre-Op!!

Today is my pre-op day. I will post details when I get back. I am a little nervous as I dropped three pounds this weekend. I was going to proudly tell her that yes I had lost weight but that I had maintained for several weeks...not so much. Upping my calories YET AGAIN! I will now be at the standard 2000! But I guess on a good note...I am only 2 pounds from a normal BMI!

Hills

This looks like an ugly run, but in actuality it was very good! I alternated running and walking on the treadmill at a 5.5 incline the entire time. There are a couple of minor hills on the half-marathon course so I need to do some hill training. However in the town that I live in...it is either a mountain or flat...except for the one hill in the canyon.

I am also experiencing some pain in what I think is the achilles tendon...the one that runs up the back of your leg???? I am not a biologist so I don't know anything about anatomy but it is kind of sore. I keep stretching it, but I am not going to push it this week. Between this pain and my breathing I am just proud that I keep doing the 5K's. I don't think that I will make my 25 mile per week goal this week but I should come close. If I can run a 5K every day and then do the 12 miles on Sunday I can eek out 24 miles. If I can just get 1 day with 4 miles then I will make it. We are going camping tomorrow night and Saturday night, but I will make sure to get something in. I will have to go early tomorrow morning as well. However I won't have to worry about getting grades done because I plan on doing that today. So I will certainly try for 4 miles tomorrow depending on how my leg feels.

I am going to the doctor today about my breathing (though it is better this morning!) and will ask about the leg. She probably will tell me to rest it... I just might do that until Sunday when I run the 12 miles. I have all next week to make sure I get my runs in, right?!?!

No Daily Doubles

Okay...I came to my senses. This is the last week of school, I have hours of grading left, and I said that I wouldn't start double workouts til next week. I decided that doubles while still working was being obsessive and since that is what I am working on...I have cancelled them. I will put my run up later today. I do have to go to the gym early again tomorrow though because of the doctor's appointment after work, followed by an end of the school year party.

Besides...I am exhausted again!

Daily Doubles

Today is the first day of my double workout routine. My goal is to get double workouts in at least 3 days per week for the next 2.5 weeks. Hyperventilation caused me to miss my workout yesterday so I went running at 3:30 this morning (at the gym of couse...it was 28 degrees here this morning!). Will post the picture of my run later today when I run the second one. I am confident that my legs are ready for the 13 miles....not so certain about the lungs. I am breaking down and going to the doctor on Thursday in hopes of getting some help in the hyperventilation department. I was going to go to urgent care last night, but frankly I was too tired and not in the mood to see a doctor I didn't know. I figured I could wait 2 days to see my doctor. So DH bought a bottle of wine in hopes that it would relax me enough to sleep. Oh boy did it. I had a half glass of wine and it threw me for a loop. I went to bed at 6PM and only woke up once!!! That is the first time that I haven't woken up every hour in a week! Might try it again tonight.

Rug...I mean Run Burn

OWWWWWWEEEEEEEE! My run went pretty well today despite the hyperventilating (actually I didn' t have too much of a problem most of the run), but I did end up with several very nasty run burns. My running shorts are waaaaaayyyy too big and my "spanx" like garments are getting too big as well so after running for 2+ hours today the chaffing really started to hurt. This is my upper thigh.

So despite running 11 miles, my knees don't hurt, my hips don't hurt, my calves don't hurt, but this 2 inch by 2 inch piece of flesh is about to bring me to my knees. We got some bag balm to put on it cause it is excruciating. The picture shows the worst one, but I also have one on my arm, on the other thigh and under both breasts. DAMN LOOSE SKIN!

I ran 11 straight miles, though I think something went funky with my nike+ because even though I ran slow at 9 miles...I didn't think I ran THAT slow.

Yesterday I did 7 miles. Again something funky with the nike+.

Tomorrow is a rest day and then I need to get 5 miles every day running at least 3 of them...preferably 4.

Mad at Nike+

It is not logging my runs in my challenge...grrr. It owes me 9+ miles!!!!!

Photo Shoot!

My doc is having me do a photo shoot so that I can be featured on their website, their newsletter and possibly in an advertisement campaign! HOW SWEEET! The photo shoot will be August 11 so I am hoping that I will be mostly healed from the TT!

This week is a NIGHTMARE with my schedule. I am going to go running tomorrow morning (at like 3:45 AM), go to work, then go running/walking again after work to get in my miles. There is no way that I am getting it done tonight. I am exhausted from the drive yesterday and working all day today AND running the bean bag toss at the Senior Carnival for the school. UGH..someday teaching sucks ass...today would be that day.

Well I have to figure out how to get 400 calories in my by the time I go to bed in 1 hour. I guess drinking olive oil would always do the trick...

Here is my run from yesterday. I was again working on speed so that is why it cycles pace.

Busy week...grrr

Okay so why can't everyone just schedule activities around MY schedule. Yesterday was a rest day...and my legs need it. Today I have to drive to WA to stay with my brother for my dr. appt tomorrow. Depending on how late it is when I get there...I might go running tonight. I am going to go running tomorrow morning before the dr. appt. Then I will drive 6 hours home. The next day I need to run as well...but I will have a lab to set up that morning and will not be able to go in the morning. After school I am helping with graduation stuff until 6:30 and don't know if I will have enough energy to run after that. Then finally Friday I should have no problem getting my workout in. Saturday needs to be a rest day and then Sunday I MUST run 11 miles/walk 1.

Dang it...LJM and Catalyst are catching up!!!

UNDER 30!

I did it...I did it...I did it! 29:45...and we have pictures to prove it. Just not right now. They are on DH's non-digital camera. I think we are taking them to Fred Meyers to get them developed. Look at how constant my pace was!!! And there were 2 major hills and at higher elevation.

As for the after race run...it didn't go so well. My legs were TIRED! SO I walked/ran (mostly walked) 6.25 more miles. I only got to a little over 9 miles today but is still over 25 for the week so I am happy with that. I don't have any more 5K's so now it is JUST the half marathon to prepare for. Next week we will be back to the canyon and back to training. Tomorrow is my rest day and I need it. My legs are VERY sore. Today is supposed to be a free day but I only burned a little over 1000 calories so I don't know how "free" I am going to allow it. Normally on my "free" days I burn 1400. I am convincing myself that I will be just fine!