Lisa Sabin’s - Running And Being

The sun peaked over the horizon. Most sane people were still snoozing, when we started our run. Michelle excitedly pushed toward 8:30 pace, as I struggled for the first couple of miles. My GPS revealed a 155 HR, but I didn’t feel strong. I knew I had a long day ahead of me. We slowed our pace a bit when Andrea mentioned that we were starting out a little fast. There weren’t any complaints from me.
We ran down Madison to McGilvra to include part of the Seattle Marathon course. I have run this course in reverse countless times with groups I coached for Seattle Half Marathon or Mercer Island Half Marathon, over the years. Lake Wa Blvd follows the lake for about 4 to 4.5 miles and then you reach Seward Park. Seward Park is the launch for the famous hydroplane races during Seafair Weekend in Seattle. This event is a huge excuse for Seattlites to take their boats out and party. Running along the lake is quite lovely, even serene when you aren’t fighting to keep up with really fast women. There are beautiful homes and quaint little shops and restaurants in Seattle’s Leschi neighborhood, which remind me of Sausalito,CA. We ran the 2 mile loop around the park and headed back. As the course continues, you encounter parks and boat launches. You are sure to run into teams of cyclists, who are riding the 50 mile loop around Lake Washington. It was comforting to run a familiar course. Memories of runs in the past, people I’d trained and the good times we had came to mind as we were running. I felt detached from Michelle and Andrea at times. I’m glad that they were enjoying the run because I wasn’t always contributing to the conversation. My mind was elsewhere.
I’m used to being the coach and running easily beside my runners. I haven’t run distance with people who push me to my physical limits in years. While Michelle and Andrea easily chatted my head was spinning. Can I do this? Am I slowing them down? I felt a sense of relief when we did a potty stop around mile 5. By this time we’d gotten into about a 9 min per mile groove. I had my first power gel, chocolate with 2x the caffeine. I would need it to keep up with these two.
The last marathon I ran was Rock n’ Roll Arizona in 2004. That was my last attempt to qualify for Boston. The previous year I suddenly found that I was in great shape. I ran the Seattle Half Marathon in 2002 in 1:46. If you’ve run Seattle, then you know it’s a hilly course. My running group wanted to go up to marathon level. I suggested Napa Valley.
I’d run Napa in 1997 and loved it. We planned to arrive early and do some wine tasting. There were 6 of us who trained for the marathon and another client who came down for the 5K. We had a great time. I had a nice base and some speed from my half marathon in November. I continued to build on my training. I ran 3:49 in Napa, 2003. Although this was a personal best, I missed qualifying for Boston by 3 minutes and some odd seconds. I was not totally disappointed because I’d run such a strong race. I overcame issues with my peronial tendons, which were exacerbated by the cant of the road, during the first 5 miles. My good friend Lyell paced me through the first 13 miles. She kept me from going out too fast. When I knew that I wasn’t going to qualify, I was able to continue pursuing a personal best. I knew that I would break 3:50 and that was worth a lot to me. So much of running is mental.
I was motivated after Napa. With a new personal best under my belt and a nice showing in the half marathon, I was determined to hold onto my fitness and run the Rock n’ Roll Arizona 2004. My friend Bucky and her husband Carlton “Buck” Jones had recently moved to Arizona after completing a masters and Ph.D. in Ohio. “The running is great down here, you should come down and do the marathon.” I had another group of runners who wanted me to train them for the 1/2 marathon. This was an inaugural race and they were all excited about going down, finding some sun and having a great race. I trained the group for the half and I was really excited to go down and do the marathon. I happily shed my jacket and stepped into my shorts for a balmy January race. After training in the wind and rain, Arizona was a breath of fresh air. Bucky and I enjoyed a pasta dinner with her new group of running friends. My goal was to qualify for Boston. I agreed to run with Patty, a steady runner who would help me stay on pace. Several things went wrong during this race, but I think I can pin it down to 3 basic errors. I wasn’t used to the climate and noticed the elevation. I tried to run someone else’s pace. I had reached my peak. I stayed with Patty through mile 17. We were running a respectable 8:30 pace. That’s when I encountered the hills of Papagayo Park and said good-bye to Patty. The Arizona sun emanated from the pavement. The soles of my shoes were hot and my pace waned. I had a cell-phone and I called my husband, Phil around mile 20. I’d lost my focus and ended up running over 4 hours. I had a melt-down.
I decided that if I was ever going to qualify for Boston, I had to do it in my own back yard. People kept telling me “You’re not cut out for the marathon, stick with the half”. I know this is true. I’ve been plagued by injury. It seems that whenever I’ve hit a peak in my training, I try to ride that peak too long. The result is injury and disappointment. I shelved my aspirations of running the Boston Marathon. I may be a good runner, but I am not a great marathoner.
In December or 2006, I decided that I wanted to go for it one last time. As I thought about my goals for the year of 2007, I whined to my husband. “I know I’ve suffered injuries”, at the time I had severe plantar fasciitis, “but if I don’t go for it one last time, I’ll feel like I’ve given up. I know that if everything goes right, I can do it”. Phil supported me.
2007 was about getting healthy. I cut back on running and sought out podiatrists, massage therapists and even consulted with another running coach. My plantar fasciitis had become acute, but I woundn’t let it stop me. I began training Steve in April of 2007. He came back from watching his daughter run the Boston Marathon, as a med-student from Tufts University. “I can get you in to the Boston Marathon, if you are willing to raise funds for Tufts University.” All I could say was. “I’m in.”  By the way if you are interested in supporting research on nutrition and childhood obesity, you can sponsor my number and help me raise funds for Tufts University.  www.tuftsmarathonchallenge.com/runners/lisasabin
I consulted with a PT who’d helped me in the past. Chris Clock got to the bottom of my plantar fasciitis. He is the reason that I am running today. I couldn’t have gotten through 18.25 miles without him. Today was hard, but today was good training. I collapsed after making it up the last hill. Michelle took me to Starbucks, where I immediately sucked down an orange juice, as I waited for my non-fat cinnamon dulce latte. I am hopeful that I’ll have a good race in Boston, thanks to my friends, Bucky, Michelle, Andrea, Phil, Lyell, Brad, and Chris. I also have to say that if I didn’t have the support of the community here at Sweat365, I probably wouldn’t be doing this. Thank You all!

Workout:

• Type: Run
• Date: 02/10/2008
• Time: 07:00:00
• Total Time: 2:51:34.00
• Average Heart rate: 158
• Max Heart rate: 170
• Calories: 1450
• Distance: 18.25 miles
• Average Pace: 9:24.26/mile