im back!


thank you so much to everyone who donated this season to my event. the nyc nike team in training team (130 of us) raised $525.085 for the leukemia & lymphoma society! amazing!

so, now, dont you want to know how it was?!!

leading up to my flight to california my nerves were a wreck. with lindsay no longer coming along i was terrified. yes i was traveling with my team but it i didnt really know anyone including my roommate and fear of the unknown was making me crazy. i didnt know what to pack, i had no idea how to get to newark airport and even though i had a packet with outlined details of my adventure ahead it might as well have been written in japanese.

i left my apartment at the butt crack of dawn on friday morning. (our flight wasnt until 11:30 but what if i got lost in new jersey and missed the flight?!) to my great surprise getting to newark from penn station is easy as pie and i made it safely to the continental group check-in 3 hours before departure. i met an equally neurotic traveler and fellow teammate and the check-in area and began to calm down- a little.

our flight was long but smooth and continental made those 5 hours less brutal by serving a real meal and having tv's in each seat with direct tv and on demand movies! we finally arrived around 3 in the afternoon in sunny san francisco. we all refreshed and regrouped then headed to the Nike Women's Marathon expo in Union Square to pick up our official race packets.

we spent a few hours exploring the marathon expo and got to test drive some pretty cool things like spin bikes that made smoothies and flavored air. there were stations to make signs and stickers for race day and lots of food samples. to my surprise nike flew my friend paul to sanfran for the weekend to work the event. i ran into him at the lunar glide shoe trials!











once we left the expo, the girls and i headed over to the niketown store to buy some race souveniers and to find our names on the wall. the store transforms its exterior during marathon weekend and lists every participants name. lucky for me, my name was closer to the bottom and easy to find!

T-5 days!
http://pages.teamintraining.org/nyc/nikesf09/aolear

1 week and 1 day until marathon day and still no running for this girl. im trying to keep my attitude positive and rerouting my energy into other activities.

throughout my training i always felt that my upper body and abdominals could use a little more attention but never gave them the time they deserved. keeping off my feet doesnt mean keeping out of the gym entirely. and my apartment building has been sans hot water for a few days now so i had to go there anyway, might as well workout! ive been concentrating on my arms, chest, and abdominals and hitting the female friendly weight room at my new york sports club.

core strength is important in athletes, it involves your supportive muscles in your trunk and hips. it provides a solid base which is key to supporting a strong stride... aka running faster with less effort. sweet. maybe this time off will benefit my running once im back on my feet.

in other news, my roommate for san fransico might not be able to go at all! she had an MRI on thursday evening and received the results this morning, stress fracture! that means absolutely no running for miss lindsey. 2 weeks on crutches and 2-4 weeks after that in a boot. im thankful that my injury is less serious than what shes going through. fingers crossed for speedy recoveries for the both of us.

bad new bears my friends. i made it to Queens for the half marathon 2 weeks ago. but i only saw mile 13 from the side lines. after my run on tuesday, i woke up wednesday morning barely being able to walk. i figured i had just done something funky the previous night and id have to walk it off and then id be fine. well- ive been hobbling it off for over two weeks now and, finally, today (18 days later) has been the first day im walking like a human and not a neanderthal.

ive been seeing a chiropractor since last monday. so ive only been in active treatment for about a week. i guess im healing quickly...? either way its frustrating. the marathon is 15 days short days away and my training has come to a complete hault. im trying to keep as positive as i can but as you can imagine i just want to run!

prayers and positive energy are greatly appreciated ( as are donations!) whether ill be running or dragging myself 26.2 miles in san fran, im crossing the finish line.

at practice last night we had a little race and ran the 5mi loop of central park. we approached the "race" in thirds using the 3 p's... patience, pacing, and pride. the 3 p's is a type of progression run and the idea behind it is simple - start slower, finish faster.

because everyone runs at a different pace we had to do our own calculations on how to conquer each third, but it was simple math and i figured it out (without a calculator thankyouverymuch.) here's the breakdown...

i wanted to run a 9 minute mile for 5 miles. so,
9 x 5 = 45, the number of minutes it should take me to finish the loop
45/3 = 15 minutes per third of my run

easy peasy right? now how to run it...

the 1st third, patience.
start off slow, run conservatinvely and hold back a little.

2nd third, pacing.
pick up the pace. run strong and comfortably. know youre working but remain in control of everything, especially your breathing.

final third, pride.
time to show off. at this point you should be able to run your fastest and really push yourself. i like to play a little fishing game. i find something (a horse and carraige, someone wearing a bright color, traffic light, etc.) in the distance and go after it.

using the 3 p's i PR'ed (made a personal record) last night for the 5mi loop and felt the best i ever have after finishing it.

sunday is the queen's half marathon where ill be putting my 3 p's to the ultimate test, a timed race!

bright and early sunday morning i met ashley and kristin in the middle of central park west and we joined 25,000 of other participants for the komen 5k race for the cure in central park. this race kicked off the 2009 race which will be held on october 31st.

Cynthia Nixon, Uma Thurman, Gabrielle Union, Stephen Colbert, Donna Hanover, Judge Judy Sheindlin, Senator Charles Schumer, Governor David Paterson and Mayor Michael Bloomberg were all there. oh! and Cindy Lauper sang the national anthem!

the brightroom photos havent been put up yet on their website but below are a few of my own from race day


[kristin, ashley, me]



the finish line


cute kiddies

i am officially physically ready for the 26.2 that awaits me in 5 short weeks!

last saturday i sort of slept through practice. it was rainy and gross outside, who doesnt love to sleep in a little on a rainy saturday morning? however i didnt sleep in too late and got my butt on the road by 8. ive been gradually increasing my mileage every week by 1 or 2 miles. my longest workout had been 17miles so last week i tapered my workout to 12.21.

tapering is an important part of training. but in a world with a "just do it" philosophy, sometimes it is over looked. tapering means to cut back on training which allows our bodies to repair muscles and build back up to peak strength. over training can lead to 1.) hitting a "wall" towards the end of your race or 2.) complete burnout. no fun!

so last week i tapered and this week i ran 20 miles like a champ.

our team took another field trip on saturday and headed way uptown to nose bleed new york city (178th street) to run the george washington bridge. we ran over the mile long bridge and into new jersey where we ran the shaded, and very hilly, paths of palisades park.

i hit my "wall" around mile 18 but with help from my running partner, assistant coach mike, i pushed through and finished the 20 strong and feeling great. i think running on brandy new shoes played a role in my discomfort during those 2 miles and maybe not the smartest thing to do during a long run but whats done is done and i had no pain in my feet after the run or the next day. 1 blister, but i think ill live.

we are returning to the GW bridge again next saturday and on sunday a few of my girlfriends and i are participating in the komen race for the cure 5k in central park.

the following sunday is the queens half marathon. running a timed half marathon before a full marathon gives you a good idea how youll run the full race. i havent set a goal pace/time for the race yet and im not sure if i will. i might just run it how my body wants to and see what happens!