Saturday, January 31, 2009
Thursday, January 29, 2009
Half way through the season and its not getting any easier...
Its that time of year again. The time of year where it is pitch black by 5pm, icey sidewalks challenge your ability to stay vertical while you're walking to work, and your mental thermometer has been skewed to make you believe that "warm" is anything over 20 degrees. It is the time that I plead temporary insanity and recommit to run the Boston Marathon again with the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society's Team in Training, or TNT.
I have come to the conclusion that running a marathon must be like giving birth (or so I've heard)--you forget the pain of the first when you decide to try for a second. All signs point to hell...the Saturday morning training is way too early and way too far and way too cold; the last few miles of the race itself have you wanting to die; the stomach cramps that manifest the next day keep you in the fetal position, only moving to alleviate sore muscles. Right after, you swear off running or any sort of physical activity for the rest of your life. Until something happens that makes you want to do it all over again.
This past summer, my reason was clear when my "Uncle" Jim Bruce passed away from small cell carcinoma lung cancer. I had learned the previous semester in one of my rehabilitation therapy classes that lung cancer is the hardest cancer to control. Because of its promixity to the alveolar capillaries, lung cancer can easily be carried in the blood stream and metasticize anywhere. If someone is brought in for a seisure with no prior incidents, the first thing that they check for is lung cancer (I think I am remembering this right... then again, it has been a while since I studied for a science exam). It just seems right to run Boston for Uncle Jim since he grew up just north of Boston. So when I would normally be chanting "I hate my life, I hate my life..." running up Heartbreak Hill on a Saturday long run, I now just think of Uncle Jim and his enthusiasm for life and it makes it a little bit better.
This year I decided to become a mentor for my team and in doing so, have made new friends and running buddies. I have around 12 people that I keep in touch with regarding training and fundraising. It so happens that most of my mentees are TNT or marathon veterans. One of my mentees even ran the 2007 Boston Marathon two months after finishing radiation for lymphoma. He's way faster than me. What a stud. Some mentees I haven't yet met face to face, but I run with one often after work, have met one for drinks (we excuse it as "carbo loading"), have personal "Chi Running" lessons at practice with another, and email a bunch with yet another who is training alone up in Maine in the negetive temperatures and likes to refer to himself as the marathoning snail.
Since I never knew my mentor last year, I strive to make my mentees feel included and part of the team. For what I know, they appreciate it. Or are just entertained by my wonderful sense of humor and openness. Some snippets from emails they have sent to me:
"I am happy that you feel comfortable enough with me to say "buttcrack" and "shoot me in the face" in your emails."
and
"Thanks for staying in touch by the way. It helps to stay connected, especailly with someone who is not afraid of mocking Jesus and likes to plan bar nights. "
and
"I think tomorrow we should have good weather. Nonetheless, remember to stop drinking and smoking by about 3am tonight just to play safe."
As for the training, easier said than done. Last Saturday I ran at practice with a teammate Cheryl from the Wellesley Community Center where we meet to BC over the Newton hills and back. Well, due to lack of guidance (or so I'd like to say), we missed the turn around and added an extra half mile. Which is all fine and good, except for when you are already running just over 13 miles and it is 20 degrees (rather warm...) with a huge headwind on the way home. I map many of my runs on mapmyrun.com which is awesome, so I'll paste those into later blogs.
The plan is a 5 miler tonight on the treadmill. Lord give me strength, for the treadmill is the devil.
Thank you again for all of you who have donated this year or in the past. I truly appreciate the support and the encouragement keeps me motivated as I run after work in the dark in this land of ice and snow.
If you are still interested in donating, it's not too late! Check out my fundraising site for info on donating and to see my progress... I'm just over $800 to my goal!
http://pages.teamintraining.org/ma/boston09/lvwolfe
Stay tuned... more posts to come!!
Always, Lauren
I have come to the conclusion that running a marathon must be like giving birth (or so I've heard)--you forget the pain of the first when you decide to try for a second. All signs point to hell...the Saturday morning training is way too early and way too far and way too cold; the last few miles of the race itself have you wanting to die; the stomach cramps that manifest the next day keep you in the fetal position, only moving to alleviate sore muscles. Right after, you swear off running or any sort of physical activity for the rest of your life. Until something happens that makes you want to do it all over again.
This past summer, my reason was clear when my "Uncle" Jim Bruce passed away from small cell carcinoma lung cancer. I had learned the previous semester in one of my rehabilitation therapy classes that lung cancer is the hardest cancer to control. Because of its promixity to the alveolar capillaries, lung cancer can easily be carried in the blood stream and metasticize anywhere. If someone is brought in for a seisure with no prior incidents, the first thing that they check for is lung cancer (I think I am remembering this right... then again, it has been a while since I studied for a science exam). It just seems right to run Boston for Uncle Jim since he grew up just north of Boston. So when I would normally be chanting "I hate my life, I hate my life..." running up Heartbreak Hill on a Saturday long run, I now just think of Uncle Jim and his enthusiasm for life and it makes it a little bit better.
This year I decided to become a mentor for my team and in doing so, have made new friends and running buddies. I have around 12 people that I keep in touch with regarding training and fundraising. It so happens that most of my mentees are TNT or marathon veterans. One of my mentees even ran the 2007 Boston Marathon two months after finishing radiation for lymphoma. He's way faster than me. What a stud. Some mentees I haven't yet met face to face, but I run with one often after work, have met one for drinks (we excuse it as "carbo loading"), have personal "Chi Running" lessons at practice with another, and email a bunch with yet another who is training alone up in Maine in the negetive temperatures and likes to refer to himself as the marathoning snail.
Since I never knew my mentor last year, I strive to make my mentees feel included and part of the team. For what I know, they appreciate it. Or are just entertained by my wonderful sense of humor and openness. Some snippets from emails they have sent to me:
"I am happy that you feel comfortable enough with me to say "buttcrack" and "shoot me in the face" in your emails."
and
"Thanks for staying in touch by the way. It helps to stay connected, especailly with someone who is not afraid of mocking Jesus and likes to plan bar nights. "
and
"I think tomorrow we should have good weather. Nonetheless, remember to stop drinking and smoking by about 3am tonight just to play safe."
As for the training, easier said than done. Last Saturday I ran at practice with a teammate Cheryl from the Wellesley Community Center where we meet to BC over the Newton hills and back. Well, due to lack of guidance (or so I'd like to say), we missed the turn around and added an extra half mile. Which is all fine and good, except for when you are already running just over 13 miles and it is 20 degrees (rather warm...) with a huge headwind on the way home. I map many of my runs on mapmyrun.com which is awesome, so I'll paste those into later blogs.
The plan is a 5 miler tonight on the treadmill. Lord give me strength, for the treadmill is the devil.
Thank you again for all of you who have donated this year or in the past. I truly appreciate the support and the encouragement keeps me motivated as I run after work in the dark in this land of ice and snow.
If you are still interested in donating, it's not too late! Check out my fundraising site for info on donating and to see my progress... I'm just over $800 to my goal!
http://pages.teamintraining.org/ma/boston09/lvwolfe
Stay tuned... more posts to come!!
Always, Lauren
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