Week 7 - A Stroll Through the New Hampshire Hills

As always, I want to thank my awesome donors - Sara B. and a lovely Anonymous friend - who gave to my fundraising page this past week!

LORI RUNS BOSTON MARATHON FUNDRAISER

Don't forget to purchase your tickets to my awesome fundraiser on Sunday, February 8 fro 2-4pm at Slumbrew's American Fresh Taproom in Assembly Square!  Tickets start at $25 and include food, an awesome finish line photo booth and automatic entry for a special door prize!  Please purchase your tickets as soon as advance as possible to ensure that there's enough for food all!  This event is all ages, but you must be 21+ to purchase beer at the bar!

There will be an amazing raffle featuring the following prizes:

• Dinner for 2 at Bergamot
• $50 Gift Certificate to La Brasa
• $25 Gift Certificate to Red Bones (2)
• $25 AMC Theaters Gift Card
• $25 Target Gift Card
• $20 Gift Card to Flour Bakery
• A cider tasting for 2 at the Bantam Cider taproom 
• 2 tickets to a spring performance at Jose Mateo Ballet Theatre
• In-studio portrait session with photographer Mike Basu (the genius behind my headshots)
• Wine basket courtesy of Victory Programs
• Live This Day baseball hat courtesy of Nine Five Ltd. (2)
  

Want to enter the raffle, but can't make the event? Make a donation of $20 to my CrowdRise page between now and February 7 and I'll enter an arm's length of raffle tickets into the raffle with your name on them! 

Awesome New Logo!

You've probably noticed my super cool new logo, right?  I have to give huge credit to my super talented friend Marta Melo for designing it for me!  Isn't she the coolest?  She used the Marathon finish line that gets painted on Boylston Street for inspiration and I think it's boss.  I've had some cool tote bags printed up with the logo that will be on sale at my fundraiser!  Thank you, Marta!

It's Really Happening!

I had hoped to get three runs in this week before Sunday and the Boston Prep 16 Miler in Derry, NH but was only able to squeeze in two.  Normally I always take a rest day after a long run - mainly to give my kneed a break - but since my usual rest day fell on MLK Day, I felt like I couldn't really waste a whole day off without taking a spin around the Mystic.

I didn't take any pictures on my short runs this week for a few reasons: 1. I run the Mystic pretty much all the time and there's only so many interesting photos I can take of it and 2. My second run this week was in the dark so there you have it.

Just me and Meb hanging out

What I DID take a picture of this week was me and my official Boston Marathon Invitational Entry Form!  My colleague Shauna gave it to me on Tuesday and I filled it out IMMEDIATELY.  There's no going back now - I am so running the Boston Marathon!

I have to say I got a little emotional when I stopped to put the envelope in the mailbox.  I never in a million years thought I would be doing this.  I used to joke that the only time you'd ever see me run is if someone was chasing me and here I am now about to take part in one of the most iconic races in the world.

I am so honored to be able to participate in this incredible adventure and am truly humbled and grateful to all my friends and family who have donated money, time, and support to help me get here.




On Wednesday, I planned on doing a 6 mile run after work, but had to cut it down to 3.  I had a total case of dead legs.  Usually when I feel this way at the start of a run I can shake it out and loosen up after a mile or mile and a half, but this was not one of those nights.  It was frustrating to not get the mileage I had planned on doing - I am a really stubborn person and HATE not following through - but if I've learned one thing from KneeGate it's that listening to your body is SUPER IMPORTANT.  My legs were telling me to knock it off, so I did.  Also for the record, this was NOT a good night time route. It was early enough in the evening when I went for this run, and I ran streets around the neighborhood that I know well and feel safe on generally, but I was acutely aware of how dimly lit a lot of the streets were.  I was glad I wore bright clothes and used my running gloves with the built in flashlight.  I really can't wait for a few more hours of daylight!!!

Just a Casual Jaunt Through New Hampshire

In case you're wondering, sarcasm is abound in that heading!  My awesome and inspirational friend Dani had let me know about a 16 mile prep race taking place in New Hampshire a few months ago and I was all "Yeah! Let's do it!"  So...we did it.

This was the most nervous I had been going into a race in a really REALLY long time.  Not only had I never run more than 13 miles at one time, but I was going to do it in the presence of other people training for the Boston Marathon and on terrain much different than anything I was used to.  This race started as a training route some folks from New Hampshire started running in preparation for the Heartbreak Hill section of the Boston Marathon.  In case you didn't know (which I didn't until recently) Heartbreak Hill is not just one hill!  It's a 3 mile stretch of rolling hills through Newton and starts at about the 16th mile of the course when your legs have already taken a beating and many people start to feel like they're hitting the proverbial wall.  So, this race is meant as a physical and mental prep run for that...fun, right?

I stole Dani's picture. Thanks, Dani!

Neither Dani or I had ever run this race before, but her friend Paige (another charity runner) had so the three of us embarked on this adventure together.  The race was in Derry, NH and everyone gathered at the high school to pick up bibs and swag (awesome tech shirt!).  Then, we changed from snow boots to running sneakers and got ready to go!

The start line was a short distance from the school and we lined up on the street next to a barn with three really beautiful horses hanging out.  You could really see who was from out of town based on how excited we were to see the horses.  Dani is the queen of the race selfie so we all hopped into a photo and off we went!

Trust me.  It was harder than it looks.

My whole approach to this race was to treat it like any other long run, not as much as a race.  That being said I was really happy with my pace as we went along.  I was averaging just over a 10 minute mile for the first 5 miles or so with some smaller hills and I was thinking, "Hey this isn't so bad."  In fact, I was all smiles until about the 10th mile when OH MY GOD WHAT ARE THESE HILLS.

Honestly, I was in awe of seeing people running up them.  I absolutely had to stop and walk for awhile to get to the top of a few of them because they were so steep and even walk up them burned! I was using muscles I don't think I even knew I had! And so it went for a good 3 miles.  Every time I thought we went over the last one, there was ANOTHER ONE.  By the time we hit mile 13 and the steep hills gave way to flatter (or at least significantly less steep) roads.  Miles 14.5-16 were probably the hardest 1.5 miles I have ever logged in my LIFE.




I finally crossed the finish line in just under 3 hours.  It was tough.  Really tough.  I had finished the BAA Half Marathon in 2:04, meaning the extra 3 miles combined with the hills tacked on FORTY-EIGHT MINUTES.  Ouch.  I came in 320 out of 350 people.

But you know what? I TOTALLY RAN THAT RACE! AND FINISHED! AND I AM SO PSYCHED!

Sometimes it's not about being the fastest or the strongest...it's about digging deep and proving to yourself that you can do what you set out to do even if it's REALLY REALLY HARD. I am really proud of that race and a day later I am still cruising on the emotional high of having done it.

Here are some more pics from the race!

The snow from the day before made everything really pretty!
Tried to snap a pic of the horses but it didn't come out great.

Folks getting ready at the starting line

Me at mile 8 (half way point)while I was still happy and smiling

I just really liked the bear.  

After the race there was water and pizza back at the high school and then we headed back to Boston, where Dani and I headed over to the Slumbrew American Fresh Taproom for a few, very much deserved Porter Square Porters.

I probably won't get to post my Week 8 recap until Wednesday next week because LORI RUNS BOSTON will be RUNNING NEW ORLEANS! 'Til then, friends!

Week 6 - Getting in the Groove

Many thanks to Karen M. and the Vincent Family for donating to my Boston Marathon fundraising page!  I am getting so close to my minimum goal of $5,000 for Victory Programs - only $1,277 left to go.

You can help me get there by making a donation to my page here or by joining me for my Lori Runs Boston Marathon Fundraiser on Sunday, February 8!  The Super Bowl will be over, the Pats will have another trophy (knock on wood) and you KNOW you'll be looking for something fun to do during the afternoon from 2-4pm!

I just picked up a donation from Bantam Cider for a tasting for 2 at their Somerville tasting room and came home to a donation of these super cool "Live This Day" hats courtesy of Nine Five Ltd., an amazing apparel company that donations a portion of all of their proceeds to nonprofit organizations.

You can buy your tickets to my fundraiser here!

Feeling Like Me Again

I have to tell you guys I was starting to feel like I might never get over my knees injury or get back to feeling as good in my sneakers as I did over the summer training for the BAA Half.  I am really happy to report that I think this week really signaled a turn around.  Not only did I log more miles this week than I have in a long time (23!), I completed my longest run since October AND am feeling zero knee pain.  I don't want to jinx anything, but I think I am back in the training groove FINALLY.  And it couldn't come at a better time since next weekend I will be participating in the Boston Prep 16 Miler in Derry, New Hampshire.  I am a little scared of it, but have much more confidence today then I did this time last week.  Bring it on NH!

I was still feeling sluggish with a cold all this past week, especially dealing with chest and nasal congestion.  I ended working from home on Thursday because I felt so bad about all of the coughing and nose blowing I was doing at the office. Surely my amazing co-workers didn't deserve to hear that all day!  Working from home have me a really great opportunity to toss on my gear as soon as the clock hit 4pm and get outside for a run before the sun set. Oddly enough, I felt my best when I was running with this cold - it really cleaned out my nasal passages (gross, I know, but seriously it felt so good to BREATH).

My goal was to run six miles.  I ended up running seven and I'll tell you why.  When preparing to head out for my run I remembered to turn on the GPS location feature on my phone but failed to turn off my wireless.  I knew something was amiss when I hit the turn in the road where I usually hit my first mile and was met by silence from Map My Run.  I run this route all the time and know approximately when I'll hear the mile markers so I knew I was around the SECOND MILE when the voice of Map My Run told me I ran my first mile. Oh geez.  I am a VERY stubborn person sometimes and I decided I would not stop my run until the app recognized that I ran 6 miles - so I ran 7.  And because, dear friends, I refuse to let you think I am lying - I point to EXHIBIT A - the first mile time on my run screen shot that clocks in at 16.11 min/mile.  We all know I am not the fastest gal around, but I did NOT run a 16 minute mile!

Miles for Meg

On Saturday, January 17, I woke up to an 8 degree morning.  Normally, I would probably have decided not to gear up and hit the pavement, but it was a different kind of day.  I had found out about a virtual run taking place world wide to remember Meg Cross Menzies, a runner in Richmond, Virginia who was killed by a drunk driver while out on her morning run.  Basically, her friends and families ask runners (and non runners) everywhere to get out there and log miles for Meg. How could I complain about the cold when I had the privilege to live, breath and run.  I threw on three layers, my warmest tights, two pairs of socks, my neck/face warmer, gloves and hat and did a 3.1 mile run for Meg.  Take THAT Real Feel of -7!

It felt good to go out there and celebrate Meg's life and remember the peace that comes with a quiet morning and seeing my breath in the cold, crisp air.  To learn more about Meg, click here.

13.1 and Done

I don't know what it is about New England weather, but on Saturday it was 10 degrees when I went out for my run and on Sunday it was 46!  It was a totally amazing, perfect day for a long run.  Warm, overcast and an occasional spit of rain. I wanted to get 13 miles under my belt this weekend so I could feel prepared for the 16 miler coming up.  I mean, if you do 13 what's 3 more miles, right?

I didn't have to worry much about gear selection since it was so warm out, but I did use KT tape on both of my knees to prevent any injury.

I didn't have a real plan on where I was going to go so I played the whole route by ear running from Somerville through Cambridge, over the Boston University Bridge, down Commonwealth Avenue into Kenmore Square and past Fenway Park.  I hit the 6 mile mark as I approached my alma mater, Emmanuel College.  I decided to stop briefly to take a picture and start a new This American Life episode for the second half of my run.  Later, when I got home I posted this photo to Facebook and the Emmanuel College Alumni page shared it and called me and the New England Patriots athletes in the same post!  How cool is THAT!? 

After my short photo pit stop, I traveled down the Fenway and around muddy river, back around Fenway Park, across the Massachusetts Avenue Bridge to the Cambridge side of the Charles River.  Guys, nothing makes you feel more like a legitimate runner than running along the Charles River.  It's THE cool running spot and  felt kind of bad ass passing other runners like, "Yeah...I am totally training for the Marathon and am sooooo cool." It's a dorky thing to admit, but there it is.

I followed along the Charles and then went back the way I cam through Cambridgeport into Central Square then Union Square then Sullivan Square and home.

On the last leg of my run from Union to Sullivan, I had to stop to take one more photo.  I have passed this spray painted piece of plywood a few times on shorter runs and didn't want to stop and disrupt my flow, so I finally decided with 12 miles under my belt I could afford to stop for a moment and snap a pic.  It was just too perfect to ignore.

So there it is. 23 miles and my best week of training so far. I want to keep this momentum going going going!!!

Thanks as always for following along!

Week 5 - Of Cold and Colds

Sorry I am late with my post this week.  As the title of this post indicates, I have not been feeling my best, but more on that later!

LORI RUNS BOSTON MARATHON FUNDRAISER - SUNDAY, FEBRUARY 8

Just a friendly reminder that tickets are on sale for my Marathon fundraiser on Sunday, February 8  
from 2-4pm at the American Fresh Taproom in Assembly Square, Somerville. 

For more info and to buy tickets, click here.

There are going to be some really super raffle prizes up for grabs including:

• 3-course dinner for two at Bergamot
• $50 gift certificate to La Brasa
• $50 gift certificate to Red Bones
• A Bantam Cider tasting for two at their Somerville tap room
• Two tickets to Jose Mateo Ballet Theatre
• An in-studio portrait photo shoot with  Michael Basu
• A wine basket courtesy of Victory Programs
• Live This Day hats courtesy of 95 Ltd.

Oh My Gosh It's Cold

Unless you happened to be on vacation somewhere lovely over the past week, I don't need to tell you how insanely cold it's been.  Not only did the weather put a deep freeze over the city, but it managed to do it to my training too.  I had every intention of getting a run in on Monday after work, but in the 3 minute walk from my bus stop to my house the wind was so cold and hard tears were running down my face.  I'm just not hard-core enough to turn around and go for a run in that kind of weather.  Thus a new rule of my training has been born - NEVER LEAVE THE HOUSE WITHOUT MY GYM STUFF.

If I had the forethought to bring my gym bag just in case, I could have just gone right to the gym after work and pounded our 4 miles on the treadmill.  Instead, it was a night wasted.

One thing I can say my running has taught me is how to dress for the cold!  When I woke up on that lovely -1 degree morning, I had a plethora of base layers to choose from to brave my hour-long morning commute that consists of two buses and a train! 

This week was kind of a perfect storm of weird odds and ends that kept me off-focus and it wasn't all temperature related.  I am temping at a job to make up ground from the expensive holidays and that keeps me out until 8pm twice a week - nixing runs on those two day (it's only for the month of January so I'll get those days back soon enough). 

On top of that, I am so excited to be taking a trip very soon that required me to purchase a ball gown.  Now, I don't know about you, but I haven't had to purchase a gown since high school and it's been a solid 15 years since I graduated so I needed to go shopping! For all the fellas out there that think it's not a big deal to buy a dress, here's the thing - you have to buy a dress and the shoes before you can go to the tailor and get it hemmed (unless you're amazingly tall and don't need to worry about that kind of thing) and the tailor needs a good 8-10 days to get everything done so TIME IS OF THE ESSENCE!  Long story short, I needed a gown and I needed to get it this week to ensure that it was ready to go in time for my flight to New Orleans (more on that trip in future posts).

Oh My Gosh I Have a Cold

Onto the third and final element of my perfect storm of bad training this week - I got sick.  Like coughing, runny nose, wheezing, disgusting sick.  And it hit me on a Thursday, in perfect time to thwart my week 5 long run - yep - just after having bragged last week about not having missed one.  That's what I get, I suppose.

My new jacket!

I did run through the sickness twice - three miles on Saturday from Harvard Square home and three miles on Sunday as part of the Slumbrew Happy Soles group run (next one is on February 8 - same day as my fundraiser - if you'd like to join!).

Let me back up a second before talking about my runs this week (I suppose there's not much to say give their brevity, but still) and allow me to sing the praises of TJ Maxx.  Seriously, guys.  I get the majority of my running gear from TJ Maxx and it's always so affordable.  I snagged this super warm, awesome jacket there this week when I was on my dress hunt for only $25 - AND IT HAS POCKETS!  I have no idea why all running jackets don't have pockets.  I feel like I am trying to stuff the entire world into the tiny pocket in my running pants and it's uncomfortable AND unflattering so when I find jackets with pockets I rejoice.

 I also saw that they had KT Tape for only $8 a roll.  I have never used KT Tape before, but given the odd state of my knees I thought I would buy a roll and see if it's legit or some master scam.  YOU GUYS - THE STUFF IS AMAZING.  My right knee had been bothering me - probably from overcompensating when my left knee was down and out - so I watched the tutorial online and taped it up on Saturday in anticipation of my evening run.  The change in how my knee felt was virtually automatic. I don't know how it works, and quite frankly I don't care - all I knew was that I needed to go get more before it was all gone.  I bought two more rolls from TJ Maxx on Sunday morning.

Saturday Run
I worked my temp job in Harvard Square on Saturday until 5pm and my desire to get home and watch the rest of the Patriots game was sufficient motivation for me to run home (faster than the MBTA by far). So I wore my awesome new jacket and my nice warm Brooks running pants and ran the 3.5 miles home.  Between lack of running all week and my cold, it was a tough few miles.  I could breath fine, which I was nervous about, but I was SO TIRED.  It really sapped all my energy and I knew a long run on Sunday was not in the cards for me this week.  Also, I didn't realize when I planned this jaunt home that there was going to be snow and ice on the ground.  It wasn't much, but when your knees are questionable the last thing you want to do is slip.  I have some running YackTrax headed their way in the mail so this won't be a problem for much longer.

Sunday Run
Instead of doing a long run, I went to Assembly Row and did the monthly 5k with the Slumbrew Happy Soles.  I really like running with these folks.  Everyone is friendly and as someone who is kind of shy and easily intimidated in these environments, it's important that a running group be relaxed, fun and welcoming. I hope you'll join the group on the next run on Feb. 8 at 11am - and stick around for my fundraiser at 2 :) I actually felt better (in terms of my running anyway) on Sunday.  I think the fact that it was 20 degrees was great motivation to move FAST. I managed to run the route with a 9:16 min/mile as opposed to the 10 minute mile on Saturday.  I was, however, totally spent when it was over.

You might have noticed I tracked my Saturday run on Runkeeper and my Sunday run on Map My Run and the reason is based entirely on being able to get a GPS signal.  For whatever reason, I couldn't get a signal on Sunday with Runkeeper and could with Map My Run so I used that one.  Thank goodness for so many phone apps since I opted to leave my watch at home!

Thanks as always for reading, folks!  If you'd like to donate to my fundraising efforts, please click here and make a donation to my Crowdrise page!  I am only about $1,300 away from reaching my $5,000 minimum goal so any and all help is greatly appreciated!

Until next time!

Week 4 - Happy New Year!

I am so grateful to the many people who made donations to my Boston Marathon fundraising efforts over the past week - Ingrid, Cheryl, Dave & Susan, Jim & Diane and my amazing mom, Linda!  What a fantastic way to close out 2014 and welcome 2015.  I am now 70% of the way to my $5,000 fundraising goal!  Almost there!  You can make a donation to my page here.

I am hoping my Lori Runs Boston Marathon Fundraiser will help close the gap even more.  If you'd like to attend on Sunday, February 8, please purchase your tickets online at Eventbrite and I'll see you there! There will be some great raffle prizes available at the event from Bergamot, Red Bones, La Brasa, Jose Mateo Ballet Theatre and more!  You won't want to miss it.

Where did the week go!?

I feel like I want to blame the holidays for feeling like my training has stalled out a little, but really it's all on me.  I keep waiting for everything to click and find myself on the trails or the treadmill 4-5 times a week without fail or interruption like I did when I was training for my half marathon, but it just hasn't happened yet.  Yes, I've been favoring my knee and trying to be smart about not re-injuring it, but I feel like I could be pushing myself more.  I suppose it could be a New Year's Resolution, but who ever keeps those?!?  No, it's just a matter of making it happen and really getting serious about my training again.  Unfortunately, last week was not the week for THAT.

As has become my new (and unfortunate) tradition as of late, I have been taking two days off after my long runs to ensure that I don't mess up my knee so Monday and Tuesday were rest days.  Wednesday, New Years Eve, was my next day out on the road. We got out of work at 2:30, which allowed me to go home, change into my gear and run in the actual sunlight after work.  My GOSH what a difference that makes.  Sun, it seems to me, is what provides the extra kick in the pants to get outside after work and move my butt! Usually by the time I get home from work and put on my gear it's dark outside.  Once the sun is gone, I automatically lose my Mystic River route (friends don't let friends run in wooded areas alone in the dark) and have to do on-street running, which I don't like as much.  But not on this day!  On this lovely NYE, I put on my new pullover and ran 4 miles around the Mystic and was home in time to shower, change and have some traditional NYE fun.

That NYE fun meant no running on New Years Day, unfortunately.  Ok, ok so not really.  I did sleep in on January 1 and went for a lovely brunch with my boyfriend and his family.  I could have squeezed a run in, but knowing what an insane weekend it was going to be with work and social obligations, I knew I was going to have to do my long run on Friday so I gave myself Thursday off.

One thing I can say for certain about my training that has gone really well is that I have not missed a long run.  I am inching up my mileage every week and getting ready for the Boston Prep 16 Miler on January 25 in Derry New Hampshire.  Yes, you heard me right.  I made the brilliant decision to run a 16 miler prep race...in New Hampshire...IN JANUARY.  Uhg.  Seemed like a good idea at the time.  I have never run more than 13.1 miles in my life, so I knew this was going to be a tough race, but I am the kind of person who does better with milestones to work toward so when I signed up I thought, "Hey, by the end of January this should be a piece of cake."  What a dummy.

Anyway, I tackled an 11 mile long run on Friday and it was AWESOME.  I remembered to bring water and fuel this time - small victories - and it made an incredible difference in how I felt the entire time.  I repeated my Minuteman Bikeway route this week because I didn't spend enough time mapping out an alternate route in advance, but it worked out perfectly.  It was about 40 degrees outside with sunshine peeking out through the clouds regularly.  I waffled about whether or not to bring gloves or a hat, but since I wasn't wearing anything with pockets and knew I'd be stuck carrying anything I needed to take off, I decided to skip them both and it was the right decision.

One hard thing about this blog is trying to keep it visually interesting. There are no leaves on trees, I run the same routes a lot and I kind of hate stopping mid-run to take photos (pause watch, pause RunKeeper, take phone out of armband, take photos, put phone back in armband, resume watch, resume RunKeeper).  I'm always thinking to myself, "Ok, where should I "pull over" and take a photo or two so people don't get bored."  This time, I stopped at Spy Pond in Arlington to

snap a few photos. The episode of This American Life I had been listening to for the first half of my run had ended, so it was a good point to mess with all of my technology at once.  I took a few neat snapshots of Spy Pond, queued up another TAL and headed back on the trail. 

Knock on Wood

You guys.  I think I may have turned a corner here. This long run was by far and away the easiest feeling run since I ran my half marathon in October.  I felt great - not so much as a twinge of discomfort in my knee - and by the time I hit 11 miles I felt like I could still do another 1 or 2 miles.  It's also one of the first time I woke up the morning after a long run and didn't hurt all over.  I am hoping this is a sign of good things to come.  This weekend, I am going crazy and skipping the 12 mile mark and going straight to 13.  I think I am ready physically and mentally to go back to that magical number!