This kinda stinks... With the buzz of running the marathon starting to wear off, I was hoping to be starting training for 5ks and 5 milers in the next couple weeks for the fall/early winter racing season. Instead, I think I have a stress fracture and I need to start trying to find an orthopedic doctor to give me some recovery recommendations. I'm already anticipating complete frustration with the recovery process... but I'm gonna try and stay optimistic.

First item of business... find an orthopedic doctor who can help. More later.

Where to start??  Well, this was/is kind of an up and down experience for me.  But, I'll get to the race recap and cover the down a little later...

The night before the race, Melissa and I had dinner with our parents at the hotel.  We had a pasta buffet that was pretty good.  And, for race jitters, it was a great idea to eat at the hotel.  After that, my parents took Sophia (our daughter, for those who don't know) to sleep in their bedroom.  This was key, because we wanted to try and make sure we got as much sleep as possible.  From there, we went to sleep at like 10 pm for a 5 am wake up call...

Then, we got up bright and early at 5 am to start getting ready to head over to the race.  It was a kind of crazy/nervous feeling all morning.  It started with a shuttle from the hotel to the Metro that would take us to Pentagon City.  That went off without a hitch.  From there we had to walk, what seemed like a couple miles, to the UPS drop-off point for all of our post race stuff (warm up suit, socks, new pair of shoes, etc.).  After we sat around there for about 45 minutes while we tried to stay warm, we finally decided to head over to the start line (about another mile away).  Since all of our "warm" gear was in our bags headed in UPS trucks to the finish, it was pretty cold in our race gear.  But, lucky for us, we had each other and were able to cuddle up behind a wall of a building out of the wind. We got to the start and had to battle the cold for about 45 minutes until we started heading over to our starting positions...

So, Melissa and I said our goodbyes and good lucks and went to our starting positions (me at 4:00-4:09 and Melis at 3:50-4:00).  It seemed like forever (but was more like 6 minutes) from when the starting gun went off and when I was actually able to cross the start line.  To give a point of reference, I was shooting for 9:09-9:10 miles.  The first mile was fun... but not great for the race itself.  I ran a 11:16 first mile for no other reason then it was impossible to run faster.  Mile 2 went decidedly better at 7:23.  But, for a race that is supposed to be even splits, that doesn't bode very well.  My next two laps were 9:34 and 8:57.  I can remember thinking that I was going to finally settle in to a pace.  Mile 5 was 9:39 and there was still pretty much congestion and Miles 6 and 7 went off at 9:51 and 8:55 respectively.  To be honest, I'm not sure if this was my pace or the ebb and flow of the race.  I think it was the latter though.  I didn't have a whole lot of control over how fast we were going.  Mile 8 was 9:18 and a total time of 1:14:57 (9:22 miles).  This was with my first 11 minute mile factored in and just following the crowd the whole way.  Not terrible...

Then, a race altering event happened...  In mile 9, my stomach was starting to feel less than normal.  It wasn't terrible, but I knew I had 17-18 miles left in the race and thought I could get my pit stop in early and not worry about it later.  So, I was passing some port o' pots and decided to stop (hopefully for the last time all race).  Well, that part was true.  Unfortunately, by the luck of the draw, I picked the first stall.  Apparently somebody was dying in there.  I literally waited for 2:30 minutes before I was reconsidering the stop.  Then, at that point, I was so invested in the stop, it would have been stupid to ditch it.  All in all, this stop cost me 5:30 minutes when it should have cost me 45 seconds to 1:30 minutes max.  So, at best, I lost 4 minutes here....  So, mile 9 ended with a 14:03 mile.  I'm not sure what I could have done to avoid this.  But, I'm sure going to keep it in mind if I ever run a marathon again. 

Funny enough, that took all the pressure out of the race.  Having no real chance at my 4 hour goal, I decided to just run for fun.  Just then, the race kind of cleared up for a couple miles and I was able to post a couple nice splits...  Mile 10 at 9:10, Mile 11 at 9:07, Mile 12 at 9:12 and Mile 13 at 9:08.  So, no chance at making up for lost time, but good splits this far into the race.  Mile 14 and 15 began to dip a bit 9:25 and 10:08 and then 16 went to 10:22.  I remember my spirit being a little beaten at this point.  I had no chance at my goal time and had finally succumb to the fact that I was just racing for the experience now.  Again, I started to enjoy myself and the splits got better again for 17 and 18 (9:33 and 9:32). 

Then, it happened...  I was on the 19th mile and starting to really dig in and I saw a guy with "Pain Train" written on his back.  It was funny because.. first, that's how I felt.  But, second, and even funnier...  my buddy Nate always does his Terry Tait imitation at work and tries to tackle me.  I couldn't resist the temptation and went blowing by this guy yelling, "Pain Train coming through!!! Woo Woo!!!".  He was laughing hysterically, and everyone else around thought I was a nutcase.  It was my absolute favorite part of the race (aside of finishing of course).  That lap went off at 9:43 and the next went off at 10:01 for mile 20 and 10:05 for mile 21.  Then the wheels started to fall off.  Mile 22 was 10:55 and Mile 23 was identical.  Somewhere in there, the race doubled back on itself and I was desperately trying to find a familiar face.  It would have been a real shot in the arm if I would have been able to see Melis doubling back or my daughter and parents on the side of the course.  But, alas, the last 4 miles were lonely and painful (as expected).  I was gritting my teeth as I went slower and slower.  I ran a 11:27 24th mile and a 12:03 25th. 

Then, the real challenge began...  We entered the final 1.2 miles and what seemed like a sea of spectators.  These were the same type of fans that come out to watch NASCAR for the accidents or watch operations on TV.  Yeah, they love to watch people crashing and burning.  And, they got their fill.  I was absolutely one of the ones who crashed and burned.  I was about half way into the last mile and really couldn't get my legs to turn over at all.  It was like I was walking but trying to run.  People were passing me left and right.  There was nothing left….  That said, it was a bitter fight to the finish.  I could hear the crowd cheering and I knew I had to be close.  I turned the final corner to climb the hill that ended the race (are you kidding me?) and fate through me another curve ball.  My right quad started to tense up.  I don't know if it was the fact that I was doing an up hill after 26 miles or that the end was in sight and my legs were giving up a little early.  Either way, I thought I might be crossing the finish walking, not running.  But, luckily, I was able to massage out the cramp and keep treading up the hill.  The feeling of elation as I crossed the finish was pretty much unexplainable.  I finished in 4:24:30.. but that is absolutely secondary at this point.  I feel pretty accomplished just to get to that finish line.

Now, for the bad news…  My right foot hurt all day Sunday after the race.  But, I just assumed it was post marathon problems.  But, when it was still bothering me on Monday, I decided to go to the hospital to get it x-rayed.  Despite the fact that the x-rays came up negative, they believe that I have a stress fracture in my foot.  It looks like I'm sidelined for a bit.  I'm on crutches and the whole bit.  

So, a big weekend for Meliss and I.  We finished the marathon (Melis in 4:03).  Now, I think I have an equal challenge to partake in… recovery.  I hope it's not as bad as I think.  I've worked too hard to get to this point.

Ok...  this is probably taking this a little too far.  But, I figured that I would let you all know that I am moving my blog to a new location on blogger.  I've got a few people that read and can't comment because they are not Myspace users...  So, I've gone Hollywood and created a real Blogger account.  I will probably be doing some double posting for the next week and a half through the end of my marathon training, but that will probably be the end of my Myspace blog experiment.  If you'd like to check out the new blog, you can find it here.

Happy reading and running....

We (Meliss and I) started our taper (ramping down in mileage towards the race) after our 20 mile run a week and a half ago.  I really thought it would be more difficult to keep myself off the roads and I thought I would get really ancy.  But, I have to be honest, I've kind of enjoyed the break.  After 10 months of consistently ramping up miles...  my body is happy to take a short break.

I went on a 4 mile run last night and my legs haven't felt that good in a long time.  Another fringe benefit of the shortened miles is that Ivey (our lab) is able to go on runs with me again.  She went on 3 runs with me last week and has already gone on my only run this week.  She doesn't know it yet, but she's got 2 more runs this week in her too.  That's pretty cool.  I forgot how much she enjoys getting out on a run.  And, she is a much better behaved dog when she's been exercised. 

We officially have 6 runs until the marathon.  The mileage is as follows.... 3,4,8,3,2,2...  Very doable, huh? I have no idea what it feels like to run 2 miles at this point.  But, it's gonna be weird, I guarantee. 

So, I guess it takes a little more than just saying you want to lose weight to lose it.  Since I stated that I wanted to lose weight last week, I have gained 1 pound.  No big deal, I lose that back.  But, I certainly haven't gone in the right direction.  With our work moving buildings, things got kinda stressful.  So, I really need to buckle down and try and lose a couple pounds before the marathon.  2 and a half weeks to go.  195 sounds like a good goal.

So, right as I start my taper, my foot is really swollen and hurts from my 20 miler.  Hopefully the new shoes and some lighter running will clear it up.  But, this is probably the most annoying thing that has happened since I started running.  Boo...  It hurts to walk on.  I can't wait to see how it feels to run on.

I went out to the York Rails to Trails for an early morning run with Nate and his buddy John (the one that unknowingly started our C25k craze).  I had a 20 miler planned (the last long run of my training) and they had planned to do 6.  So, essentially, I had a nice warmup run with Nate and John.  It was certainly appreciated and needed.

I had run the Heritage Trail once before, and I enjoyed it.  Today was no different.  It is nice soft gravel and is very flat.  It's ideal for a long run.  The first 8 miles was as easy as pie.  Nate and John actually added two miles to their original plan and kept me company a little longer.  But, the last 12 miles were pretty brutal.  I'm not sure how fast we went for the first 8, but I think it was too fast regardless.  My body really started to break down after 16 miles or so...  And, my mind broke down earlier than that.  I think it was the stark contrast of having two people to talk to and enjoy running with and then transitioning to total and complete loneliness.  Usually, I enjoy my run, but not so much this time.  I think I was just ready to be done with the training. 

Anyhow, I made it back in 3:33 (10:39 miles) and was super glad to be finished.  That is my last long run of the training.  Now it's time to taper!!

I had some time to think while I was running my 5 miler today and decided that I wanted to lose that last 15 pounds to get to my goal weight.  I've been maintaining my weight for the last 2-3 months.  But, with all the miles I've been running, it sure feels like I should have been losing.  I am trying not to be too hard on myself though.  I mean, really, I've lost 32 pounds this year and only have about 13 to go until I hit my goal of 185. 

So, I've already instructed Meliss to pick up the girly Smart Ones for lunches again and I'm gonna try and lose a little weight before the marathon.  After my half marathon, it appears as if I am going to be really close (I mean razor thin margins here) to my goal time of under 4 hours for the marathon.  In fact, the McMillan calculator puts me at 4:02 for the marathon based on my half time.  But, it was a challenging half and the marathon is pretty flat.  That coupled with a little weight loss might be just enough to put me over the top (or under the time).  Besides, I would really love to get back to 185.  I haven't been that light since 2001 (when Meliss and I started dating).  So, although Meliss insists that she loves big guys, I'm sure she can't argue with having a trim/fit husband. 

So, Melissa, Nate, Marcus and I all ran the Hands on House Half Marathon on Saturday.  For Melissa, Nate and I it was our first half marathon.  For Marcus, he's run a couple already (including this one last year).  Nate's girlfriend Jen also ran the 5k associated with the event.  So, we had a nice little group running.

I didn't expect to be as nervous as I was when the race was getting ready to start.  I was thinking that I wanted to treat it as a training run instead of racing.  I don't know...  It just felt a lot scarier when I was standing there.  I have a feeling that's gonna be the case for the full marathon too. 

So...  time ticked down and it was time to start.  Melissa wanted to run the first couple miles with me.  But, that is always a challenge for her.  She kept looking back at me wanting me to run faster.  And finally, I told her that "I am going to run my race".  She has this utopian idea that I might be able to run a race at her pace some day.  Well, today was not that day.  Maybe some day sweetie. 

Despite not wanting to average any more than 8:30 minute miles for the first 5 before the big hill, I started with an 8:08 mile.  I was running with these two guys that were obviously running together and we were talking...  I told them that I was going to drop off a bit because I was running too fast.  I intentionally dropped off the next mile and ran a 9:07.  Not at all a consistent race so far, but I knew I needed to slow down. 

Then, I started to settle in to a rhythm.  I ran a 8:57, 8:46 and 9:25 in the next three miles... Then, I put in a "hill aided" 8:17.  That mile put me virtually at the base of the biggest challenge of the entire race.  But, Nate and I had gone to run this hill a couple weeks earlier, so I knew exactly what to expect.  I ran that mile in 9:30.  Not great...  but to be expected. 

Then, we got another downhill mile and I ran it in 8:24 and clipped the next mile off at 8:32.  I was really trucking along now.  My 10th mile was exactly the pace that I wanted for the whole race, 8:42.  Then, I followed that with a 8:40 mile.  Mile 12 was my hardest and I was finally bored/tired and ready to be done.  I ran that a little slow for no other reason then I was sick of the race at this point.

Finally!!  The last 1.1 miles...  I was sooooo ready to be done and started to really pick it up.  I didn't want to put too much effort out there, but I also wanted to get finished.  I came down to the last .1 mile and I heard a familiar voice cheering me on.  Melissa was on the last stretch telling me that the finish was right around the corner.  I took off sprinting (a little early because I misjudged the distance), but then I turned the corner to the finish and started sprinting again.  I don't think I could've run any faster at this point.  I looked up at the timer at the finish and saw that I would really have to hustle to get through under 1:55 (my goal was 1:54 something).  So, that was all the motivation I needed.  I came through the line at 1:54:55.  Awesome!!

Then, after I collected myself and got some water, I finally got to hear how Melissa and Marcus did.  I came to find out that Meliss ran a 1:47:07 (good enough for 4th in her age group and 19th out of 153 women).  Top 20, awesome!!  Then, Marcus ran a 1:34 something which was good enough for 28th overall.  I'm jealous.  And finally, we went back to the finish line to cheer for Nate as he came in.  His goal was 2:10 (we knew he was being a sissy) and he ended up coming in just over 2 hours at 2:02.  Awesome job everyone.  I think we all came away very happy with our race.  Very cool.

There was a period of time where we thought Meliss might get an award for 3rd in her age group.  A lot of times, the races won't include the overall winner in the age group awards.  If that would have happened Meliss would have had some hardware to go with her great run.  But, alas, they included the winner in her age group and she finished one place out of the awards.  But, for a first half-marathon, I'd have to say that's pretty darn good. 

We are 4 weeks from the full marathon.  Can't wait to be done with this training schedule.  Melissa and I enjoyed the race and realized that we really miss the racing part of our running.  So, after the marathon, I'm sure we'll get back into that (although Meliss wants to be pregnant by the spring running season).  But, it's time to get nervous for the big race.  Yikes.

It was a good week for running, mostly because it was different than most..  Despite the fact that I missed one of my runs, I would have to say that it was pretty successful.

On Tuesday, Nate and I went to "the hill" on the HOH half marathon course.  It was .8 miles of uphill climb.  Pretty steep at the beginning and it leveled out towards the end.  The run made me less apprehensive about the hill...  But, it will still be right smack in the middle of 13 miles of racing.  Should be tough.  On the way back down the hill, Nate and I ran "like little kids".  We basically ran a majority of the downhill increasing our speed as we went.  By the end, I'm not sure it was physically possible to run any faster.  That was the most fun I've had running in a while. 

On Wednesday, I followed that tough workout with another tough workout.  Christina was going out for a run over lunch, so I joined her.  I told her from the start, I was shooting for 9:08 miles because that is my goal marathon pace.  I have to admit, I have no idea how fast 9:08 is...  We ran an 8:07 first mile and tried to back off it.  But, by mile 3, it was clear we weren't going to be running anywhere near 9:07 miles.  In the end, we ran 4.8 miles at 8:22 pace.  Too fast.

Then, I had planned to run my 19 miler on Friday on my day off.  That didn't really work out.  My legs and body were feeling the effects of two tough pace workouts earlier in the week and were ready for a break.  With the 19 miler looming, I decided to push it off a day and give my legs a break.  So, I went out on Saturday morning for my 19.  I tried a few new things on this long run.  To start, I used lemon-lime Powerade on the run because that is what they will be serving at the marathon.  It's too sweet and I really don't like it, but it caused no ill effects.  So, it should be fine.  And, I also used two different types of energy gels during my run to try them out.  At the 8.5 mile mark, I had a vanilla Clif Shot.  That was really thick and hard to get down.  This is the type of gel that the marathon will be giving out.  Then, I had an espresso Gu at the 15 mile mark.  That was better and not so thick.  So, I might just carry my own gels on the marathon.  All in all, the 19 miles went well.  It took about 3:18 (which 10:24 miles).  My legs really didn't start to die until the 17 mile mark.  So, it was a good run.  One more long run (20 miles) before the marathon.  Almost there...