February 2019 Monthly Running Challenge

katharmonic wrote: »

Thank you @mbaker566, @MegaMooseEsq, @kgirlhart, @shanaber and @Elise4270 and all the hugs on my post. I did manage to get to urgent care and got some muscle relaxants and advice to ice instead of use heat. I'm having trouble finding a comfortable way to rest, but hoping everything will ease up soon.

Elise4270 wrote: »

Some of you already know, but figure I’d update the masses, that I have surgery scheduled March 6th (femoral derotation osteotomy, right), and it’ll be sometime before I can run. Luckily the orthopedic surgeon is a marathoner and is cool with trying to keep me running although suggested I embrace cycling. I gather this could potentially be the first of more surgeries (FDO left, PAO right- but he nor I can tell the future so... we’ll see), but if this does the trick then it’s onward! If you happen to know any stories of running post FDO, please share!

Here’s a quick illustration of what FDO is for those curious.

MobyCarp wrote: »

Sparx_81 wrote: »

MobyCarp wrote: »

quilteryoyo wrote: »

@MobyCarp You amaze me with the paces and races you run. Have you been a runner all of your life?

@quilteryoyo

The smartass answer is, "Not yet."

The honest answer is that I started running in August 2011 at the age of 55. I found a program similar to C25K. The first workout called for intervals of walk 1 minute, run 3 minutes. I walked 1 minute, ran 1 minute, and was compelled to slow to a walk. That's where I came from. After injuring myself on my way to my first half marathon, twice, I got some formal training and made it to my first half in April 2014. I kind of accidentally ran my first marathon at Buffalo on Memorial Day weekend, 2015; if I hadn't run Boston the year after that, my running buddies might have killed me for wasting a qualifying time.

So that's 4 years and 8 months from not being able to run more than 1 minute, to completing my first Boston Marathon. Others may have developed faster, but that was good enough for me.

Absolutely amazing! Just one question, how do you "accidentally" run a marathon?!

@Sparx_81

I've posted this before, but you might not have been around then.

My plan in 2015 was to run 4 (later amended to 5) half marathons, and stay in shape to run a half as often as they showed up. This was experimental at the time; I had used a 14 week training program to get to my first half in 2014, and I got to my 2nd half by barely working up to the distance after recovering from a stress fracture. I wouldn't have signed up for that 2nd half, except I registered for the marathon before I got hurt and I was able to trade down to the half.

So in 2015 I was thinking I'd just develop more slowly, and run my first marathon in September 2016 at Rochester. Meanwhile, I'd do marathon training long runs with the training group. No pressure, because I had no marathon at the end of the session. If I couldn't run the marathon distance, just run the half marathon training distance.

In March 2015, the training program had us run 16 miles. A buddy was training for Pittsburgh and needed 20 miles. I said, sure, I'll run the last 4 miles with you. And I did. And my running buddies said, "You're ready! You have to run Buffalo!" Of course, all the hotels were booked, and the start time was too early to be comfortable driving 2 hours from home to get there, and I was totally unfamiliar with downtown Buffalo anyway. But I went online and looked, and thought about driving, and didn't like much of anything I saw . . . until I saw one hotel with one room left, a mile from the start/finish area. I booked the room, then I signed up for the marathon. On six weeks notice, without a proper marathon training plan, just the long runs.

I was going to ignore the Boston times, but I was not given that luxury. My sister posted them at me online, and my buddy who was training for Pittsburgh pointed out that I wasn't qualifying based on running Buffalo at age 59, I was qualifying based on being 60 when Boston rolled around. Then he said, "The only way you won't qualify is if you don't finish."

No pressure.

I did a bunch of things wrong at Buffalo, but it turned out that I'd learned enough from 9 months of running long runs with marathon runners to avoid the worst of the common rookie mistakes. I finished, and got a BQ by a wide margin. Then I never went back to Buffalo, because it was always too soon after Boston.

So anyway, that's how I accidentally ran a marathon and qualified for Boston. If there hadn't been a hotel room within walking distance of the start/finish, I wouldn't have done it.

debrakgoogins wrote: »

I think I am dealing with shin splints in my left leg. I have tried to be very careful about my build up. I took a full week off which helped but I can still feel it. I'm hoping it improves soon. My 1/2 marathon is in 9 weeks!