Lisa Sabin’s - Running And Being

Today I myself in a familiar place. I have done the work to prepare for my marathon. I adhered to my original training plan for the most part with a few minor deviations. All in all the training has gone well.

I haven’t run a marathon since 2004. The longest I have ran in the last 4 years prior to marathon training is 13.1 miles. I have ran a lot of half marathons over the last 4 years, maybe too many. I ran 5 half marathons in 2006 and became injured. I shouldn’t have run the last one. I began developing plantar fasciitis but continued to train. I kept thinking I could train through it and then recover afterwards. This reminds me of a recent post from Sportsminded. He describes two different personality types. Apparently, I lean towards someone with high global self esteem which means that I believe I am less susceptible to injury in-spite of contradicting information.  I sometimes ignore pain and push through it.

Hopefully, I have learned a thing or two about myself after 13 years of running.  Sometimes less is more.  I have a clearer understanding of what my body is capable of.  The marathon has humbled me.  I admit I’m human and I can’t always guarantee how my body will respond.  I’ve learned to listen carefully.  I’m not perfect and I still make plenty of mistakes like continuing to run with a blister, which is almost gone.  Thank goodness.

Now is the time to run easy, increase my carbohydrate intake and prepare for my race.  I have to trust that I’ve done everything that I can.  I won’t increase my fitness at this point.  I sometimes feel sluggish during the last week before a big event because I am not training hard.  I miss the outlet of intense work outs, but I know that I need the rest.  It’s count down time….and I am ready for Boston!

Workout:

• Type: Run
• Date: 04/13/2008
• Time: 07:00:00
• Total Time: 1:26:00.00
• Average Heart rate: 150
• Max Heart rate: 168
• Calories: 720
• Distance: 9 miles
• Average Pace: 9:33.25/mile

I really lucked out with the weather today. My schedule was really light, so I took the day off to do this final long run. The blister on my left foot was really bothering me as I ran down the hill toward the Burke-Gilman trail. I stopped at the Jack n’ The Box, where the employees took pity on me and gave me a new bandaid with neosporin. I patched up the blister, hit the trail towards Lake Forest Park. I ran out towards Mathew’s Beach and back. There are dots on the pavement every quarter mile and there are also mile markers out there. I played a little game of trying to stick with 9 min pace, which felt pretty good today. Maybe I adapted to the elevation at Sunriver so this run was easy until I headed back up the hills of Brier. Glad to be done! I am ready to start my taper for Boston.

Workout:

• Type: Run
• Date: 03/31/2008
• Time: 07:30:00
• Total Time: 2:52:53.00
• Average Heart rate: 161
• Max Heart rate: 175
• Calories: 1543
• Distance: 19 miles
• Average Pace: 9:06.28/mile
• Ascent: 760 ft

I’m down to my weight goal for Boston. Originally, I wanted to drop 5 lbs to help me increase my speed and make running easier on my body. A few less lbs to carry up the hill was the idea. Now the trick is to maintain this weight. I may drop a couple more, through the training. The miles are starting to add up so it could happen without to much effort. We are cleaning up the junk food around the house, because Phil is in training for Mt. Shasta. He wants to drop some weight too. The only problem is when the teenagers come over they want pizza and ice cream. It takes a lot of discipline to resist indulging in that stuff!

Here is how I did it:

I have increased my mileage through my training, so I’m burning more calories. I cut starchy carbs and simple sugars from my diet. That means no chocolate, no deserts etc. I reduced the amount of latte’s by about 50%. I’ve been eating organic oatmeal, a protein shake with banana or ezekiel bread with a poached egg in the morning. Lunch is usually a salad with olive oil and balsamic vinegar, with some pecans and goat cheese or some form of protein. Dinner has been sockeye salmon and broccoli, asparagus or spinach salad. If I am hungry I throw in an organic apple or banana. I’m also drinking about 48-64 ounces of water. I love San Pellegrino. The day before a long run or race I eat more carbs. I include a multigrain bagel and some whole wheat pasta. This seems to be working for me.

Workout:

• Type: Run
• Date: 02/27/2008
• Time: 16:00:00
• Total Time: 00:34:20.00
• Average Heart rate: 158
• Max Heart rate: 169
• Calories: 300
• Distance: 4 miles
• Average Pace: 8:35.02/mile

I’m stoked!  We couldn’t have asked for better weather.  It was 65 degrees and sunny.  I’ve been really worried about this race because it would be a good indicator of my fitness.  I was afraid that my pace would take a huge dive going from 10 miles to 15 miles.  I’ve lost about 3 pounds over the course of my training.  I noticed this last week that I didn’t feel really fresh.  Yesterday I drank a lot of water and increased my carbohydrate intake.  I feel like I’ve put in some good training, but I felt a little dehydrated and depleted of carbs.

My strategy for this race was to take more gel, so that my glycogen was topped off.  I started out with a new drink I found at Whole Foods called Recharge.  This drink doesn’t have any high fructose corn syrup.  I recently noticed that a lot of the sports drinks do.  I tossed a Nuun tablet, a calorie free electrolyte supplement into my recharge.  I took an accel gel at the start, and two more during the race.  My pace slowed a little on the way back of this out and back hilly course, but not too bad.  I ended up running a faster 10 mile than the 10 mile race a few weeks ago.  My half marathon time was faster than I’ve run since 2004.  I have confidence now that my training approach is working.  I’m looking forward to Boston now! 

Thanks Michelle and Andrea!  This series has been a lot of fun.  It’s great having these races scheduled into our training.  One more to go!

Workout:

• Type: Run
• Date: 02/23/2008
• Time: 09:00:00
• Total Time: 2:05:06.00
• Average Heart rate: 166
• Max Heart rate: 180
• Calories: 1098
• Distance: 15 miles
• Average Pace: 8:20.7/mile

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

Today’s race was a lot of fun.  I was a little nervous about the possibility of snow and black ice, but it turned out okay.   We all had a good race.  I’m used to the starting gun and bigger races.  Even though we started on the track with a ready, set, go the FSRC knows how to put on a great race.  This time they fed us baked potatoes with all the trimmings.  Yum!  This was the second race in the series and a tougher group of runners showed up today, lots of people who are Boston bound.  The fastest female came in just over 1 hour, averaging a 6:08 pace.  That’s fast! 

Workout:

• Type: Run
• Date: 01/26/2008
• Time: 09:00:00
• Total Time: 1:23:45.00
• Average Heart rate: 166
• Max Heart rate: 177
• Calories: 800
• Distance: 10.08 miles
• Average Pace: 8:18.61/mile

I got through the holidays, started the New Year right with a 5 mile race on New Years Day. Now it’s time to put in the training. My goal is to train smart, running 3-4 days per week. Each week includes 2 speed sessions, one long run and an optional moderate run. I also plan to strength train 2 days per week. This is crucial for me as the marathon will take me to the edge of my physical and mental limits. I have run 3:49 and now my goal (4 years later) is to run 3:50. I am capable of this is I stay injury free.

So, this year is not about getting by. It’s not about getting away with what I can get away with, because I have a decent metabolism. It’s about optimizing my training. That means I will devote myself to being the best I can be over the next 104 days. I’m cleaning up my diet. I’m cutting sugar, coffee, and wine to kickstart my progress. Dropping 5 lbs will help with running the hills, but won’t rob me of strength. My goal is to be lean & strong.

Workout:

• Type: Strength Training
• Date: 01/04/2008
• Time: 08:30:00
• Total Time: 00:30:00.00

My race is 4 months from now. It’s raining and cold, the usual dreary Seattle Winter weather, and I am regretting telling my friend Michelle that I’ll do 8 miles with her. I’ve had a cup of coffee and I’ve got my GPS on, but I just don’t want to go out there in the cold, dark rain.

There is no cheating when it comes to marathon training. It is the ultimate test. I’m not a gifted marathoner. The marathon is a tough distance for me, as I’m better built for shorter races. Suddenly, I find myself feeling a little nervous. I have to follow my training plan which includes running 4 days a week and doing 2 days of strength training.

If you’ve been reading my blog, you’ll know that I am doing The Resolution Series as part of my training. The support of an organized run will help get me to my goal.   Michelle is training for the Western States 100 Mile Ultra.  Andrea is training for The Boston Marathon as well.  We are all doing the Resolution Series.  We’ll support each other through our fitness goals, getting in some running together. 

Michelle and I got in 8 miles today.  If we hadn’t made the committment, both of us wouldn’t have ran today, at least not 8 miles.  We stretched a bit and stopped at Starbucks, the usual reward at the end of a run.  I am glad we went!

Workout:

• Type: Run
• Date: 12/22/2007
• Time: 08:00:00
• Total Time: 1:09:40.00
• Average Heart rate: 161
• Max Heart rate: 170
• Calories: 650
• Distance: 8 miles
• Average Pace: 8:42.5/mile

Although I got a late start, I’ve been a serious runner since 1994. I ran my first marathon in 1995 on my 30th Birthday. It’s been my goal to run the Boston Marathon since then. I missed qualifying by 12 minutes that year. I needed to run 3:40 and ran 3:52. Running in the most prestigious marathon, is the ultimate for most runners. The fact that you have to qualify, only fueled my competitive juices.

Over the next 9 years I ran 6 more marathons. I love running so much that I became a personal trainer and running coach in 2001. I continued to train and came within 4 minutes of my goal in 2003, when I ran 3:49. I was seriously hoping to qualify in 2004, but it didn’t happen. I had flare ups of plantar fasciitis off and on since I began running. In 2006 I ran 5 half marathons. Apparently, this was too much for my body. My plantar fasciitis returned and became accute. The qualifying time for me now is 3:50. I am capable of this. The only problem is staying injury free.

As I thought about my goals for 2007, in December of last year, I became depressed. Would I ever run the Boston Marathon? I hate being injured. Running is my life! Runners out there know what I am talking about. Running brings focus to your life. It’s gotten me through good times and bad times. It’s the one thing I do for myself.

I made a resolution in December of 2006. Inspite of my battles with plantar fasciitis, I was determined to run the Boston Marathon. I started a blog, entitled “Boston or Bust”. My goal was to run the Portland Marathon in 2007 and qualify for Boston. When I began my blog. I put myself out there and shared my dream with the world.

Even though I am a personal trainer and running coach, I needed outside help. I scheduled appointments with a massage therapist, chiropractor, podiatrist, and physical therapist. I hired a coach. I listened to my advisors.

I began blogging about my struggles. I tracked my progress or lack of progress. There were times that I was jealous of other runners who were racing when I couldn’t. However, I knew that if I didn’t get to the root of my problem, I wouldn’t ever be able to run again pain free.

Tracking my workouts on Sweat365.com really helped. I found a lot of runners out there struggling with injury. I began reading other blogs. I became inspired when others overcame obstacles. I wasn’t ready to run the Portland marathon in October. So, I thought maybe next year…..

That’s when I began training Steve. Steve is a very fit cyclist, who has done the STP (Seattle to Portland Ride) 22 times. He is an amazing person, who has had a few challenges of his own. Steve also has a daughter who is a medical student at Tuft’s University. She ran the Boston Marathon in the Spring of 2007. Steve knew how much I wanted to run Boston. He went to Boston to watch his daughter run. He was so excited to see her finish, that he came home and said “Lisa, I can get you into the Boston Marathon, all you have to do is raise funds for Tufts. The funds that are raised goes to research on nutrition and childhood obesity”.

“I’m in”, I said, but my I was still recovering from my plantar fasciitis. I spent the next 2 months taking time off running, to make sure that I would be able to do a marathon in the spring of 2008. Steve had given me an opportunity. The chance to run Boston, without having to qualify was a gift. I know that I am capable, but now the race is not about me. It’s about something greater. It’s about sharing my story and helping others.

Steve’s goal is to run the marathon with his daughter. He is now training to do his first half marathon with a group that I am training for Sweat365.com. We are doing the Las Vegas Half Marathon on December 2nd. This is the half way point for us. We’ll run our half marathon and then continue to train for Boston. We are both doing something we didn’t know was possible.

Starting my blog and sharing my dreams was crucial. This made me accountable, not only to myself, but to others. Hiring coaches and listening to them was also important. It’s hard to coach yourself. The most successful people seek the advice of mentors. Tracking my workouts helped me stay focused. I could see what I was doing and what I needed to do to reach my goal. I had to have faith in myself, and in the process. I believe that things happen for a reason. We each have a purpose, and as we go through life we attempt to define that purpose. I think sharing what I know helps others. Maybe that’s my purpose.

If you would like to sponsor me for the Boston Marathon, it’s easy. Just go to my website:   www.tuftsmarathonchallenge.com/runners/lisasabin

Your donation is tax deductable and very much appreciated.

Thank you!

Lisa Sabin
“Boston or Bust”