Marathon Hopes Dashed and Life Update in General...

Warning. This will be a long one. First and foremost since this is a running and weight loss page, this is the update in that area. On July 14th I was running an 8 mile and about 5 miles into the run the ITBS came back full force and led me to give up on my marathon hopes for this year. I can still run 3-4 miles pain free but that is about it. I took a week off and now I am back to running 3-4 miles several days a week. It was a great disappointment for me but it was a long 3 mile walk back to my car in pain so I know I made the right decision. I am looking to sign up for a few 5k runs in the next month to help curb the running bug which has been really bad lately!

On to the next area of life. Graduate school. I got my Master's paper finished and submitted to the school for graduation. My oral exam has been set up for August 10th and after that I should be officially graduated. I get to walk in the ceremony in October since I will not be running in the marathon this year (they are on the same day). For the most part all is well in that area!

Finally, I got offered and accepted my first Master's level therapy job last week! I will be working with developmentally disabled sex offenders in St. Paul! I am very excited about it but of course not all is welll in that area. Here is the timeline. I had my interview last Monday and it went very well and the only stipulation was if I could get out of my internship 3 weeks early to start the job (I initially agreed to stay at my internship until the end of August). I called the director of my internship that Monday evening to explain my situation and ask if there was anything we could do to come to a satisfactory compromise. Throughout the week in the meantime I talked with many people that they thought I should take the job because there was no gurantee that another one will come around in the next several months plus it is relevant to what I want to be doing with my career.

Well Friday comes and I have to decide on the job by the end of the day and I still had not heard from the director of my internship. I decide I can't put it off any longer call the director and put in a 3 week notice of termination and accept the job! I have 3 Mondays I will be there and then start August 13. Late that afternoon I get a call from the director that we wants me to set up a meeting with the school and he wished he could have been included in the decision making process!!! I figure he does not have much leverage and I will not be calling the school to set up a meeting. I need 700 hours for the school and by the time I am done in three weeks I will be at 1050 hours. The contract also outlined the position to be 30-35 hours per week and I have done 40+ each week. In the end it all evens out but he just needs to be an inflexible pain in the ass. (Doesn't help I am going to his direct competitor either! :)

That is all that has been new with me lately! We are having our engagement party today and I start the new job tomorrow! Busy month for me!!!

I would walk 500 miles...eh I mean run?

Well just noticed a neat fact today. It was exactly a year ago when I bought my first pair of running shoes and started training for my first race. Since then I have logged 506 miles and ran in 6 different races! I was able to eclipse the 500 mile mark today on my anniversary of running! My goal for the next year is 800 miles which averages to be around 16 miles a week. Overall it has gone fairly well. Mild shin splints and IT Band friction have sidelined me for about a month total but I have done well bouncing back and getting on the road.

Speaking of getting on the road, I went 7 miles for my long run today outside with no pain! To top it, I went shirtless a good portion of the run which I wouldn't have done in March! Things are looking up and I am leaving for vacation tomorrow morning to Rhode Island. Yes. I am bringing the running shoes and am planning to get a few miles logged across the country! Good mood can't you tell! Peace.

On the road again!

Had my weigh in yesterday and I was down another 1.2 lbs! Any downward movement is good movement in my book!

Big news today! I put on my first miles on the road this morning since my half marathon 3 weeks ago. That means I can finally start weening off the damn treadmill. The IT Band pain finally subsided. I went for a short 2.5 miles and plan on doing my first marathon training run indoors on Monday. Don't want to go right back to pavement and hurt myself again. Good news though and hopefully it stays that way!

Limited posting lately. Trying to push and finish my master's paper in the next few days. Lots of work the last week.

Weigh In and Injury Update Part 2

Well it has been two weeks since the half marathon and I have run a total of 7 miles!!! Sarcasm at all? Good news is that I can go about 2 or 3 miles with no pain and am going out today to try a 4 mile run. If I can complete that successfully then I am planning on starting my marathon training from a 10 mile a week plan (significantly different than my 25-30 miles a week I was doing before ITBS. Wish me luck!

Good news on the weigh in though! I pushed through my plateau and dropped 6 lbs since modifying the diet. Lots more chicken and veggies but may be the push I needed! I am down a total of 34.3 lbs so far and only 6 more to go before I reach my vacation goal! I know the blog has been slow but keep checking back! The support is much needed! :) Have a good day everyone!

Weigh In and Injury Update

Well its been a week since my half marathon. I have not done much and have not run at all until today. I had weigh in this morning and posted little over a pound gain. It's not ideal but I suppose it has to do with being off the road for a few days and eating the same has I had been when training at an intense level. During the half at mile 11 my IT Band tightened up and I had been struggle with knee pain since.

Like any good student I did my homework and spend about the last week icing and stretching for an hour a day. The last few days it had felt better but I attempted to go a mile on it this morning and the pain persisted. I thought more about it and figured I had just woken up and was accustomed to stretching after I run. That means that I ran on it when it was cold and tight. So...to make a long story short I went back to the gym tonight stretched out my IT Band before I ran and went to miles with hardly any soreness or pain. Hopefully I am on the upswing because having sunny 70 degree whether does not bode well I am couped up with an injury! Wish me luck!