KillerUps

Another goal for the year.
Get out of my comfort zone.

I’ve been running with a group called the KillerUps.  Way out of my comfort zone.  I am by far the slowest in the group.  Each Friday night, I stress about whether or not I should run with the group in the morning.  When I do, I never regret it.  Last year, I ran twice with them.  This year, several more...Picchetti, Kennedy, Angel Island, Castle Rock, Table Mountain, and finally Alma Bridge (not with the Killer Up Group).

Wow. I forgot this existed

Well, let’s get this party started!  I always forget this place exists, find it, write and head off into life again, only to rediscover.  Funny how my goals never really change...

So...I have been keeping up the fight, although miles seem harder and slower.  And I haven’t quite figured out this age and weight gain thing.

But, I am not giving in, and will keep that post below.  It hasn’t really changed.  Now, that is all.

Thoughts...
135lbs
26:00 5k
4:30:00 Mar
40 miles per week
Pilates/core 4x per week
                                                  That is all.

Resetting goals

Every once in awhile, God has this way of telling me to reset.

I knew in my heart that CIM was just not going to happen...But I persisted.  When CIM seemed out of reach, I set my eyes on Redding.  I'd run that marathon for my father.  Considering that my dad is a quadriplegic, it seemed noble.  Afterall, he loves the idea that I have M.S. and run marathons.  All the while, I  knew Redding wouldnt happen either.  I needed a different goal.  One that would push me to a new running level.

Then WHAM!  I get sick.  Really sick.

OK, I wasn't dying.  I just came down with a bad cold that wouldn't die.  Coughing, sneezing, muck.  I don't usually keep a cold long.  I tend to throw off the sniffles in a day or two, usually giving it to Kelly.  Not this time.  Two weeks.  No running.

I really have no interest to run another mediocre marathon.  I may never be fast, but I know I can get better at 26.2 miles.

So,  now I think I'll reset.  Step back, build miles, work on some speed,...and lose a little weight.  Yeah, for the first time in my life, I think I really need to lose some weight.  I hate menopause.

Today, I ran 8 miles.  Two weeks off has taken its toll.  It wasn't horrible, but it wasn't easy, either.  I was weak.  Tomorrow will be easier.

I signed up for the San Francisco RocknRoll 1/2 marathon.  It isn't until April, and it's a half.  I have a shot at building mileage in a reasonable way.  There's also time to do some speed workouts...Now, that would be novel.

God has a way of resetting us.

Back again....

Well, I found this again.  For as little time as I really have, I seem to need this spot for writing my thoughts.  I don't know.

Since I have virtually no time today, I will just give a quick update...

I'm still running...kinda the same, but running, and I am grateful for that.
I am in the middle of a new training cycle, and plan to run the Redding Marathon this next January...Hopefully with a 4:xx time.  More on this later.

My husband and I did a Rim2Rim this last June-from south to north with a stay at Phantom Ranch.

Sorry, just really had to share.

So, I really don't have much time right now.  I hear a huge stack of papers calling my name, as well as my report cards...More to come.  Promise.
T.

Obsession

...So, I mentioned that I have Multiple Sclerosis.  Yes, that's right.  Usually, when one admits to that disease, you think of someone that has troubles in the motor skills area...Or at the very least you don't put that disease and marathon running in the same sentences.

But, here I am, running with all my heart...for long distances....kinda slowly.

Running has developed into an obsession.  Sometimes, I wonder why I put so much importance on an activity that takes so much of my time.  I think it probably comes from the circumstances surrounding my diagnosis.  I learned I had M.S. just after running the Lake Tahoe Marathon in 2005...poorly.  Before then, I was content to jog a little, quit, and then pick up again. Usually I'd start again after a lay off long enough to lose my fitness, and have to build fitness all over.

I learned that I had M.S. January 10, 2006.  It was a Tuesday.  I remember sobbing harder than I have ever sobbed before.  I had no idea what Multiple Sclerosis even was.  I pictured myself dying, my kids without their mother, my husband without a wife.  Truly.  I had no idea what the disease entailed, the prognosis, nothing.  That night, running was the least thing on my mind.  I had recently started a few miles on the treadmill...the first miles since my symptoms had faded, and the first since the marathon that September.

It's funny how when you are sure you are going to lose something, that thing becomes all important.  I'm very protective of my obsession.  I don't take my running for granted, and I cherish every time I'm able to get out the door.  Yes, even when I'm bonking...I am so very lucky.

Hello!

Well, I've wanted to do this for a long time.  I know I have a story to tell.  I just need the right place to tell it.

I have Multiple Sclerosis.  I run marathons...slowly.  I know life is full of unexpected events.  You just have to roll with what God gives you, and move on.

This is my forum to tell my hopes, secrets, and maybe even vent a little.