10 Mile Run

Hi all!

This past weekend, we dipped back down to ten miles which was refreshing after the 14 mile run the weekend before. I made much better time and was able to run the whole time with no problems from my knee! Now, I'm trying to mentally prepare myself for the 16 mile run that is coming up this weekend. We're meeting at Austin High School, and I'm hoping we don't run the hills around Lake Austin again for this long mileage. Also, our runs were moved from 7:30 to 7:00 in the morning on Saturdays from now until the marathon, so my Friday nights are officially gone! :(

Since my run from last weekend was so uneventful, I thought I would talk more about the cancer aspect of the marathon in this post. I just read, "Every Second Counts" by Lance Armstrong, a cancer survivor and 7 time (which is a record) winner of the Tour de France (the most difficult athletic competition), who has also raised tens of millions of dollars for cancer research and aid to cancer patients through the Lance Armstrong Foundation.

One thing Armstrong gives to cancer patients is hope. By various doctors, Armstrong was told he had a 20%, 30%, and 50% chance of surviving his cancer. At times, this amazing athlete was sleeping 20 plus hours a night and still didn't have energy to make it to the bathroom. When he ultimately won his battle with cancer, he decided he would live his life to the fullest and that is when he went on the win 7 Tour de France titles and form his foundation.

One of my favorite things that Armstrong said in his book was that "pain is temporary, but quitting lasts forever." This is something he lived by both as he battled cancer and as he competed in these grueling athletic events. However, his battle with cancer was much harder than any race he has ever done. He was in immense amounts of pain, but he knew that if he gave up or lost hope, it would last forever and he would never have a chance to live his life. This is something I try to keep in mind now as I'm running. In cases such as cancer, the "pain is temporary, but quitting lasts forever." At Team in Training, we're all running for the same goal - to help save lives. We keep going even through joint problems, fatigue, and other ailments, because we know that what we're doing doesn't even compare to the battle that Leukemia and Lymphoma patients are fighting all over the world.

Since the beginning of training for the marathon, I have worn a LIVESTRONG bracelet in memory of Terry O'Brien, who lost his battle to leukemia. His mother and father were on the mission trip to Guatemala I went on last year and they continue to give back to those in need. His mother, Anna, told me that Terry bought a LIVESTRONG bracelet the day he was diagnosed and wore it all five years of his struggle. When I'm running and feel tired or want to quit because my legs hurt or I'm dehydrated, I look at this bracelet and remember that what I'm running for is so important and so much bigger than this marathon. She sent me this bracelet, along with a pin with his picture on it that I will wear the day of the race for inspiration to push harder and never give up so that one day we will have the technology to help young people like Terry beat this disease.

Again, thanks to all for your continued support! Though it is not reflected on my fundraising page yet, I have raised about $4,600, which means I'm $400 from my goal! Please spread the word about this wonderful cause to anyone you think would be interested in donating!

All my best,

Lisa

14 Mile Run Picture

14 Mile Run

Hi Everyone!

The 14 mile run was great! I was very apprehensive starting it Saturday morning, since I had been having so much trouble with my knees and had missed two weeks of training, but everything went really well and my knees are feeling pretty good today! At the suggestion of our running trainer, I completed the 14 miles in run walk intervals (15 min. run, 5 min. walk for the first 7 miles, 7 min. run, 3 min. walk for the last 7 miles). Even though I wasn't able to run the whole time, I'm glad I at least got the cardio of completing 14 miles and am hoping I will be able to run the full 10 miles this weekend.

The run took FOREVER since I had to walk some of it. It took me over 3 hours! I took a hot bath and iced my knees really well yesterday and today, and I'm hoping for a good training week this week!

I'm trying to think of another fundraising event. (We've done car wash and my sis had a garage sale). Any ideas are welcome!!!! Please leave your suggestions under comments if you have any.

Have a great week everyone!

Lisa

Setbacks and Lessons Learned

Hi all!

I haven't written in a couple of weeks, because... I haven't been running! Now, this may seem strange for someone training for a marathon to not run for two weeks. Well, two Sundays ago I developed a pain in my left knee that became worse as the night went on. After talking with a trainer at the gym (and a couple of doctors), I found out I had tendonitis in my left knee. Tendonitis is an overuse injury, so the way to get better is to underuse your knee. This was not good news to hear!

That first week, I still did my usual 6 day workout week, but I swam, strength trained, aqua ran, etc. On the following Monday, thinking I was healed, I jumped on the elliptical for an hour and 45 minutes and had a 50 minute session with my trainer and felt GREAT... until the next morning, when I again had shooting pains in my knee. So that meant another week off, during which I did NOTHING!!!!!

The good news is that I worked out tonight and ran a little and so far, so good. It is a very scary thing to not run for two weeks when you have committed to run 26.2 miles in less than 2 months, but that was the only way to get better. My step sister, Jennifer, told me about one of her friends who kept training (with the help of steroid shots in the knee) and ending up with a tear and unable to run for months and months. Two weeks off sounds a lot better than that.

Not being able to run really put a damper on my mood - especially regarding health, working out, fitness, etc. - but I am fully confident I will be able to get back on track with training. After all, I'm 23 and in good health, what do I have to complain about? I think that's the mindset that is important to have through-out this process and this race.

Every time I feel tired, lazy, a general hatred toward running, I remember that I should be THANKFUL that I can get out and run until my knees feel like they're falling off. That's what this is all about - helping others who can't be out there running today get better so that next time around they can be running with me. Having tendonitis in one of your knees doesn't even compare to the emotional, physical, and mental stress of battling cancer. And if the people I have heard about and learned about in the past two months battling Leukemia and other blood cancers (and their families) can be that brave, strong, and resilient, then I can run a lousy 26.2 miles.

With this new determination and mindset, I have raised my fundraising goal from $3,500 to $5,000. I had a very successful car wash - with the help of 9 of my wonderful friends - during which we raised $550 for the cause. My sister Abby, who has the biggest heart I have ever come across, set up a garage sale using donated items and raised $440 for the cause.

Let's keep doing it!! Tell your friends, family, coworkers. This is such a great organization and a great cause. It is becoming increasingly apparent to the general public with the health care debate in main focus that healthcare is largely unaffordable, especially when battling something as serious as cancer. It is important that we do what we can to help these people, because it could be us tomorrow. I didn't EARN my health, it was given to me, and I am so thankful for that, among many other things in my life, that I find it incredibly important to give back.. so I'm going to keep on running with my head held high and just ice my knees for hours and hours a week! :)

Thank you for your continued support,

Lisa