1/2 way through and Recommitted!!!

I have recommitted to running the marathon at Rock and Roll San Diego!!! Team in training requires us to sign a recommitment form halfway through the training to make sure that we raise the minimum amount that we committed to and to make travel arrangements etc for us for the event. I am so proud of myself for recommitting.

Another reason I am proud of myself today is because I ran 4.5 miles at the buddy run yesterday at Lake Elizabeth. After about 2 weeks of running just 2 miles and feeling a little frustrated and disappointed that my knee did not allow me to run more, I was happy to run 4.5 miles again. It gave me a lot of confidence in myself. I was so proud of myself that I donated $25 to myself :)

Last Saturday, we ran at Lake Chabot. This is a hilly terrain and even though my knee was not completely well, I decided to run the route, whatever I could do. I was able to run 2 miles before my knee completely gave up. The downhills were so hard with a bad knee. But it felt good to be there with the team and cheer everyone on. I heard a lot of people complaining about their knees. I spoke to Mama Lisa about my knee and she said that I had an IT band aggravation. She suggested alternately icing and applying heat to my IT band area and also taking some anti-inflammatory pills for a few days. I may even have to go and see a chiropractor if this situation persists.

Saturday, after the race we also had honoree picnic. Our honoree Maddie, whom I had seen before the run was absent when I came back. Her mom said that after the chemo, it is difficult to predict when she would feel good. But Maddie and her mom Christine are such positive people.

Louis and Matt, our other honorees also spoke at the picnic and got so emotional and are saying that they were so happy every day to be alive. Louis went through 2.5 years of treatment for Myeloma. When he was diagnosed his son was a year old and he said that the thing that kept him going was that if he died now, his son wouldn't even remember him. He went through many chemo treatments and 2 stem cell transplants and one of them "luckily" worked for him. In 2004 he was given a few months to live cause there is no set course of treatment for Myeloma; what works for one patient may not work for another. Now Louis is so athletic and so energetic that it is incredible.

Matt, our other honoree has chronic Non-Hodgkins lymphoma. This is the same type that was Jere's first diagnosed cancer. His doctor at Stanford got a huge grant from LLS which helped him come up with a drug called Rituxan, which is used in treating Non-Hodgkins lymphoma. Matt is now in remission.

Another thing I would like to share is that I have now decided to run the half marathon rather than the full. At first I did not want to do this, cause I would be disappointing so many people who have made donations for my fundraising and also cause I felt that I would be disappointing myself for not trying to reach what I had set out to do. But after sitting out for 2 weeks after my knee injury and seeing that the farthest I could run was 4.5 miles after 2 months of training and I had just 2 more months to prepare, I thought that I should have a more realistic goal. I would rather finish a half marathon than injure myself in the process of pushing myself more while training for the full and not being able to do either. I spoke to my mentor and she agreed.

I also noticed that most first time participants in my team are running the half marathon. The full marathoners are either people who have been running and exercising regularly or have run 1/2 marathons before. After making this decision to run a 1/2 marathon I am also feeling more positive and confident that I can do it. My fundraising goal remains the same and the amount still goes to the Leukemia and Lymphoma society.

I have also reached 1/2 my fundraising goal, so I am right on track. 1/2 way through the training for a 1/2 marathon having reached 1/2 my fundraising goal. I wish I could say that I can now run 1/2 my 1/2 marathon distance, but I will get there soon.

Knee issue :(

I was so excited after my last 4 mile run, and on that Tuesday I was eager to run again with the team for another 4-5 miles. Unfortunately, due to rains and traffic that day I couldn't be there on time and missed the team so I decided to go to the gym and run on the treadmill. I ran about 4.5 miles in an hour and later realized that my knee wasnt feeling too good. I felt some pressure on my right knee.

I rested my knee the next day, but thought that I was fine again and went to the track practice on Thursday. After running a lap or two, I realized that my knee was feeling the pressure again. So I did the circuit training and went through the laps a little slower than the rest. I tried to run again on Saturday at Berkeley, this time with a strap around my knee. But after one mile I couldn't run anymore. I wanted to do the 6-7 miles that day so bad..but I did not want to injure myself and be out of the game for a long time, so I decided to rest.

I was feeling jealous of everyone else who was running and when they finished their run, they seemed so happy. Last week, Jere sent an update on her status and said that her doc has asked her not to do her daily walking exercise and this is when I realized how she must be feeling. Well, atleast in a very small way. Hopefully she gets better soon and can do what she wants. Note to self: If you want to do something, do it.

So this week I have decided to rest completely, ice my knee and see how it goes next week. Hopefully it is a simple inflammation and not something which would require a chiropractor visit.

For those of you following, do spread the word around and send my message to your friends and family. You never know who donates :)

My first 4 mile run!!

This deserves a special blog entry. This Saturday, TNT met at the Berkeley Marina. Team honorees Matt and Louis were there as well as Maddie’s mom who is also running with us. Maddie isn’t feeling very well. Hopefully she feels better soon. We all are praying for her.

Full marathoners were going to run 4-6 miles. Since I had never run more than 3.1 miles before, I decided to run 4 miles. Considering that I haven’t really been running more than 1 mile continuously and take 2 breaks atleast during my 2 mile run, this is quite a tough mileage for me. But I decided to go for it.

The first mile was not too bad. There were a bunch of robins on nearby trees chirping along cheering us. My mentor Devina joined me on mile 2. She taught me how to run with a rhythm and taught me more about breathing right while running. With her help, I could run Mile 2 with ease. I didn’t really feel like stopping. Just before starting mile 3, I took a pit stop and took a small break to fill up water and Gatorade and started running again. My running rate is 11.5 min/mile which is almost a minute less than my previous few times. So I was very happy about my pace. Mile 3 and Mile 4 were very difficult to do. My legs, my diaphragm and my shoulders were hurting with this new exertion. Devina was constantly encouraging me and giving me advise. About 0.5 miles before the finish line, I was thinking of walking for some time, but then thought of all my honorees and everyone suffering from cancer. They don’t have the energy to do this even if they want to. I must not give up so easily.

Devina kept reminding me that it is mind over matter. I had to push and distract my mind. The last mile was the hardest as it always is. About 0.15 miles before the finish line, I could see people cheering us on. I don’t know how I did it but I ran the 4 miles with just one break in the middle. That was a great feeling. Coach Al and some of my teammates were there at the finish line to cheer me on. When I stopped running I thought that I would fall down. I was completely tired and drained and my hamstrings were hurting. My body was in pain, my heart rate was super high but my spirit was thrilled and very happy that I was able to overcome this challenge. Few members from my team ran 6 miles. Someday soon I will be able to do that as well!! And more and more….

My progress

Feb 14th 2009

Happy Valentine's Day. So, I haven't updated my blog in a while and I sincerely apologize for that. Last few days have been really tiring. Let me start with Saturday Feb 14th. As is the norm these days, on Saturday I woke up at 6:30 for a 8 am run at Piedmont High. I reached a little late and missed the warm up, but that is because Piedmont high is a little difficult to find.

Neways, we ran a few laps. I had difficulty controlling my breathing and I forgot to take my gloves and headband and was freezing. So I didn't do my optimum run. We had Marathon university that day, so we had a few experts come speak to us about strengthening different muscles, about nutrition, etc. Mike from La foot told us about choosing the right shoes, etc. It was very informational.

Feb 15th 2009
My bro and sis-in-law were visiting us from New York and we all went to Berkeley to get me a good pair of running shoes from La Foot. I finally got a great pair from La Foot. I cant wait to try them on. :)

Feb 17th 2009
I missed my buddy run today. It started raining for the first time here and I didn't want to be a whimp and not go run in the rain but I was feeling a bit under the weather and I didn't want to fall sick and not go to further training sessions. So I decided to rest and recover. I was a little disappointed in myself and still feel a little guilty about it. :(

Feb 19th 2009
Today, at the Coached training, coach Rudy made us combine laps with circuit training. So basically we had to alternate full intensity laps with circuit drills like squats, supermans, push-ups, one-legged squats and crunches. Its hard. So basically you run about 5-6 laps and after each laps do a series of circuit drills. My whole body was aching the next day.

Feb 21st 2009
Today we had our first mentor led run on a Saturday at San Leandro. I ran 2 miles and I have to say that I still had difficulty controlling my breathing. I have started panting after about 1 mile and the next mile is getting harder to run because of that. My upper body and lower body aren't as much of problem but my panting is coming in the way of me having a good run. But I am sure I will get past it. I have to talk to my mentors, coaches and Mama Lisa about it. By the way, these days, Fridays no longer seem like the start of the weekend. Saturday mornings after the workout is when my weekend truly starts. My poor husband also wakes up early on Saturday because of me. :(

Feb 23rd 2009
Mondays are lower body strengthening days. So I decided to go for a Pilates class at my gym. The one hour of core exercises were hard for me because it was flexing muscles I didn't know I had. I also did some squats and lunges and some core exercises. I am actually enjoying working out especially since I think that this will help me with my running.

Feb 24rd 2009
We had a buddy run today. I decided to try to do 3 miles today. My mentor Jen was running with me the whole time and I continued to not have my breathing under control. I had to stop twice in my 2 mile run. I decided to stop after 2. Jen said that she would let Mama Lisa know about my problem. Jennifer in my team gave me some tips about breathing and I will try them next time. Mama Lisa did call me the same day and we spoke about my breathing control issue. She gave me some tips about eating and breathing techniques.

Feb 26th 2009
We had our training led by Coach Rudy again today. Laps combined with circuit drills. He increased the repetitions and my body is learning to get used to this workout. Though every day my muscles are a bit sore, I am liking it. I am feeling alive. I like my team a lot. They are a fun bunch to do workouts with. I look forward to my trainings and my runs.