Hi folks, I know I haven't been posting here before; I was mostly hanging out at Kickrunners and even had a posting hiatus from there in the latter month, but I know so many of you back from CR, it seemed fitting to tell you all about my first marathon. It took me a long time to get there... I posted this on KR, too, so if you already replied there, no need to double post. Enjoy! Bellingham Bay or Bust! - The Story of my First Marathon -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Ok, folks, I was trying to keep this reasonably short, but it turned out to be a short novel it seems, so grab a coffee. There will be a prize for those who persevere till the end! The Stats: Chip Time: 4:35:48 Chip Pace: 10:31 Age Division: 13 / 25 Place Overall: 166 / 269 Gender Overall: 65 / 134 Brief Background This is for those who don't remember me or came later and don't know me at all. I attempted to tackle the marathon twice before. The first time in Vancouver in 2007, but I had to switch to the half due to nagging injuries. On top of all that I got the flu a week before the race. During that half I re-injured my knee pretty badly. I rested up after and attempted to train up for the Bellingham Marathon the same year. The injuries were sticking, however, and I had to modify my training several times to give my body a break. I made it as far as the 18 mile long run, and my body gave in. I spent the “race day” in bed, hardly able to move, with severe back pain. I thought I had to give up running altogether… ART and Galloway Training From October to December I tried some other forms of exercise. I dabbled into hot yoga, which proved to be torturous and did not do much to improve my injuries. In December 2007 I was referred to a chiropractor who specializes in ART. He found several muscles all over my back, hip and legs that were bound by adhesions and scarring, and started the long process of unlocking them little by little. ART is not comfortable, but it did wonders for my body; my chronic back pain slowly disappeared, my knees started functioning again and it gave me hope that it may not be “game over” for me after all. One day in January I read a flyer in his office about a local coach starting a Galloway running group, and I went for the meeting. Jeff Galloway is a former Olympic marathoner who, after his elite racer days were over, began promoting marathon running for the general population. His method promises injury free running, and includes regular walk breaks, from early on. He also believes in covering the full distance of the target race (and beyond) during the training cycle. “Injury free” sounded very good at this point and I signed up. I was still posting at this time, but we started to have some medical problems in my family. I won't go into details, but I got overwhelmed and I stopped posting. I continued to run though... Training Having a “live” coach was a new experience for me, as I always trained alone, except for a brief period of online coaching, that I tried while still in denial regarding my injuries. It didn’t work out because there is nothing that any coach can do with an injured runner. Being part of a group, and being trained by a coach who is present every week was the best thing that happened to me in my running career, but it took some time for me to adapt to it. It wasn’t easy for me to give up the driver’s seat and to discipline myself to be ready for a run when it was scheduled. There were times when I questioned the need for a type of training, or times when I “just didn’t feel like it”. I was often late or unprepared. My coach would have none of that though; he wanted all runners to come to each run with their best form and attitude. Later I realized that I was resisting because I lost confidence in my body and I was afraid of re-injuring myself. Once my confidence came back, my attitude improved too. In January I started training for the Vancouver Half as a first goal race. At that time I didn’t have marathon thoughts at all, I was just happy to run again. I ran a respectable race in May, and ended up with 2:01: xx, narrowly missing my original goal of breaking 2 hours, but this all turned out to be a blessing later on. Why? Because I learned a tremendous amount during this race. The reason I fell short because I had muscle cramps and stomach cramps at the end of the race. These experiences lead to a whole lot of reading, learning, experimenting and the elimination of some foods from my diet. With my coach’s help I developed a pre-run/ pre-race routine, as well as a during run/race fueling regime and even an after-run recovery routine that served me so well during the later training months and for the marathon. After the Half I decided to give the marathon training another shot and see what happens... The members of the previous marathon group had other plans this time, so I was training one-on-one with my coach – no slacking this time around! When I started training for the half, we ran a 3:1 minute run/walk pattern. Later as we got stronger we switched to 4:1. This fit me so well that I maintained it through the whole marathon training cycle. 4:1 is just the right combination for me, keeping my legs fresh but not slowing me down by more than a couple seconds per walk break. It is also very easy to keep track of. My training schedule was simple, with two 45min runs during the week (to which we added a third, shorter one later on), and the weekend run. The weekend runs followed a 3 week cycle of long run, mile intervals and a shorter run of 6-7 miles with a mile time trial. The long runs got progressively longer; during these months I ran a 15, 17, 20, 24, 26.2 and 30 miler leading up to the race. So the official race was actually my third marathon distance run within 9 weeks. The mile intervals started at 4 and moved up by twos all the way to 12. Let me tell you, 12 mile repeats on the track was quite a workout, both physically and mentally! The shorter runs gave us a bit of a break, and the time trials gave an idea for our race pace. During the last 2 month we added hill repeats to one of the weekday runs as well. Mentally, I was still hesitant and resisting when I started marathon training. I wasn’t 100% committed and I hit a low point at around mid-July, when my 24 mile long run ended with a painful limp. As it turned out, a simple joint adjustment in my foot by the ART therapist took care of the problem, but this was enough to remind me of my previous injuries. This was the lowest point in my training, I started doubting that I could go the distance, but my coach helped me through this with a lot of patience. Just 3 weeks after that painful long run I covered the full marathon distance for the first time without problems. Now I knew I had it in me! After that run my confidence came back. The last long run in the program was meant to go over the race distance, and it turned out to be 30 miles. By now I was feeling secure in my ability to do this. A couple days before the big day I had a pre-race massage and I got a clean bill of health. The training was done and my body was well; I was ready! Pre race A couple weeks before the race lyndenrunner dropped me an e-mail, just wondering how things were. We exchanged e-mails a couple of times and he told me about Jon wanting to run Bellingham, too, so I got in touch with Tet. One thing led to another, and at the end there we were, sitting around the dinner table at the Olive Garden in Bellingham the evening before the race! I knew Gordon and his family from before, and it was lovely to see them again! Boy, those kidlets have grown big, Gord! And I got to meet our own Tetsujin for the first time, after so many botched attempts! Jon, you are such a fun, happy person to be around, and you made me feel so special! I felt like I knew you for a long time, the fact that I saw you in person for the first time didn’t seem to matter. Thank you both for everything! Race day I was carpooling as well as sharing the hotel room with two young sisters from the half marathon group. They went to bed by 9PM as per coach’s instructions, but I wasn’t able to settle down till 10PM (but hey, even that is an improvement to my normal 11-12PM bedtime). Our group met at 7AM close to the start line. I also invited Jon to come and meet with us. It was pretty chilly in the morning, but we knew it was going to be nice and sunny later on. We agreed that everyone was going to run their own race and we were off right on schedule. Jon and I ran the first 3 miles or so together, keeping to the 4:1 run/walk. Running with Jon is like running with a celebrity; everyone was pointing and commenting “Look, he is running barefoot!” I was so proud to be in his companyJ. We separated at the entrance of Cornwall Park, when he stopped to put on his flip-flops for the trail. I saw Jon again at around 16 mile or so as I was coming back after the turnaround. The course was going through Bellingham neighborhoods for the first 10 miles, than entered the Interurban Trail that stretches on for several miles close to the shore. We were treated to comfy packed dirt and gravel trails, glimpses of gorgeous views of the ocean and… hills. Lots and lots of steep, undulating hills. Here is the mile breakdown: 1. 11:02 - Going with the crowd, nice and easy. 2. 10:37 - Warming up slowly, still have my sweatshirt. 3. 9:47 – Running with Jon, chatting, till the entrance of Cornwall Park. 4. 9:53 – Jon and I separate. 5. 9:45 – I feel warm and loose the sweatshirt. 6. 9:54 – Cruisin’… 7.10:07 – Brief port-a-potty break to loose all that water I drank pre-race… 8. 9:58 - Cruisin’… 9. 9:56 - Cruisin’… 10. 10:09 - Into the trails we go! 11. 11:07 – Let the hills begin… 12. 11:42 – These hills are steep! 13. 10:11 – My half time is 2:15: xx 14. 10:50 - Admiring the strong runners who are on the way back. 15. 10:54 – High-fived my coach who just passed the turnaround point and 6-7 minutes ahead of me. 16. 10:26 – The turnaround point came right after mile 15. 17. 11:44 – Met Jon on the way back, high-fived. 18. 11:16 – The undulating trails continue. 19. 10:48 – Climbing these hills is starting to take its toll… 20. 9:45 – I guess this was a flatter section. 21. 10:35 – Volunteers cheering the runners on. I try to give everyone a smile or high five the kiddies. 22. 10:38 – My tummy is rumbling; I grab a piece of Nutrigrain bar. 23. 10:24 – What was that twinge in my right calf? 24. 10:16 - Focusing on relaxing the calves and maintaining form. 25. 10:06 – I am reeling in a lot of people now. We are running at the waterfront, what a gorgeous view! 26.11:06 – I am switching to 2:1 for a while to give the calves a rest, preparing for my “Grand Entrance”J! 27. 9:01 - The last 0.2! I made it count, and ran it strong, and crossed the finish line with hands pumping in the air and a smile on my face! I did it! (I can't wait to see the photos!) Gear and fueling I was running in black Nike shorts with white trim, white singlet and pink hat. My shoes were Mizuno Wave Rider 11, gray, silver and magenta. I had an old black zipper hoodie at the beginning as a throw-away, and a pair of black gloves that I later took off. I also had a small fanny pack with all my supplies like clip on sunglasses, hankie, food and the like. I carried all my fuel with me, again, as per coach’s instructions. I had my fuel belt with 2 bottles of water and one with Ultima, and a gel bottle with 5 gels. I also carried 2 Nutrigrain bars because I get very hungry in the later stages and need something solid. I did take advantage of the water stations, but I didn’t rely on them, and I could skip when they looked crowded or I felt I was in the groove. I have to mention that the water stations were well organized, plentiful, and the volunteers were all fantastic! Kudos to the good people of Bellingham! Post race After the race we hung around a bit at the finish line. I learned that everyone in the group had an awesome race! Our coach got first in his age group, too, kudos to him! I was only six minutes behind him. I was hoping to cheer on Jon as he came in but I had to be checked out from the hotel by 2PM and I still wanted to shower, so we got going. I am sure we only missed you by a couple minutes, my friend. My coach and his wife came up to my room for a short time and we broke out a bottle of bubbly. There was a lot to celebrate! The day after... The next morning I was a bit late getting ready for work and I noticed that I forgot my cell phone upstairs. I ran up the stairs as I always do and that’s when I realized that I had no aches or pains anywhere! I ran a marathon, and I was well. I Conquered the Beast, at last! Thanks for all of you who persevered in reading through this monster! Cheers!

Jura, I responded on KR, but wanted to say again thanks for posting this, for letting us know how you did and for giving all of us who've struggled with chronic injuries the hope that there is an "after" to it all. You are awesome, and congratulations on an excellent comeback and successful marathon!

Julia...FANTASTICO!!!!!!! You GO Girl! I miss you... Someday I hope I get to meet you arf

Sex Overall: 65 / 134

This part made me chuckle. I guess I should get my mind out of the gutter. Seriously though .... Congratulations! I really admire your perseverance. Good luck going forward.

When I changed the results category term to "gender” in one of my first RR’s, SpareRibs advised that sex is always preferred.

Thanks for the RR, Jura! I've been influenced by people who look down on Gallowalking as somehow not real running, but after your experience, and Teresa's in her half marathon, I think it might be worth another look. I take random walk breaks on many of my training runs due to the hills where I live, so maybe I should try regular walk breaks instead. Question: did you take your 1-minute walk breaks exactly as prescribed after every 4 minutes of running, or did you adjust based on the terrain? You said it was a hilly course - just wondering if you ran the downhills and took walk breaks on the uphills.

Thanks everyone, who replied! Jon Arf, yes yes! I want to meet you too! Maybe next year... Wildchild- Yes, I heard a lot of unfriendly comments about the Galloway method before, and I was greatly influenced by them, too. Just as Jon quoted, walking was considered to be a 4 letter word, only for the weak in body and spirit.... I had to get to the point where I was (with injuries) to consider Galloway training myself. I had to experience it for myself, that it works! If you consider giving it a try, don't listen to the doubting Thomases. Try it for one race and see if it works for you. You can also go to the Galloway website and see if there is a group in your area. I learned a tremendous amount from my coach. About your question, 4:1 is definitely my favored ratio, but I did adapt it based on the terrain occasionally. Some of these hills were very steep, and running them didn't get me to the top faster, so I actually adopted something like a 20step run/20step walk routine. Once on the top, I continued with wherever I was on my 4:1 schedule. The good thing about 4:1 is that it's a 5 min cycle, so I knew I always start walking on 4 or 9 minutes. Also, when I walk, it's pretty brisk, and I only loose a couple seconds off my pace.

Congratulations marathoner Jura!! Great job!!