Week 11: Running alone, and Nike!

So it's official: I am running 26.2 miles at the Nike Women's Marathon (NWM) on October 16th! I sent in my paperwork and registration late last week. My Nike confirmation came via e-mail this morning, so it's really happening!

I'm very excited, though also a bit scared. When I signed up for Team In Training, I chose the NWM and a full marathon fully expecting that I would probably "drop down" to run a half marathon in Hartford. I was just aiming high. I've been doing pretty well with training but I almost feel this pressure on myself now that it's in writing.

I'm also far from my fundraising goal, which I'd really like to strive for! I can accept donations through September 30th. If you've been thinking about donating and just haven't gotten around to it, now is a great time to make a difference! The latest breakthrough in curing Leukemia was partially funded by LLS, and even better, the gene therapy they're investigating may also help to cure other forms of cancer, too!

Training-wise, the last couple of weeks have been rough on my body. I've started dealing with a lot of soreness in my hips and knees. I'm also still trying to fully heal the shin splint in my left leg. With the shin splint, it's been weeks of feeling better, followed by a flare.

This weekend, I had another challenge: running 15 miles completely alone in rural Pennsylvania. This is only the second time I've missed a group run with the team, and the first where I didn't have a running buddy to help keep me motivated. I was especially nervous about possibly running on the roads, because while there's less traffic, they're used to looking out for tractors, not runners! Cell phone service is also spotty, so there was the risk of not being able to call anyone should I have an emergency.

I chose to skip my 3 mile run on Saturday and run my long run then, so I only had one day of running to worry about while I was away. When my mother-in-law found information on the Pine Creek Rail Trail, a lot of my worries were put to rest. The start of the trail was only a 20-minute drive from the house, and worth it to stay off the roads. I wasn't sure what to expect regarding the trail itself, but it was wonderful! It was all level gravel, very wide and well-kept, with mile markers and even facilities along the way. There was cell service at the start of the trail (and possibly further in, I didn't check), so I knew I could call to get picked up if I needed to cut my run short for any reason.

The start of my run was lonely; I spent the first 2 miles bored out of my mind and started to wonder if I could make it on my own. But then I got to cross some roads, came across some walkers along the trail, said hello to some grazing cows, and started feeling energized. The gravel trail kept me shin-pain free for the entire run. I ended up running 15.35 miles in just under 3 hours, which considering how easy I was trying to take it to protect my shin, is pretty good!

Yesterday I bought new running shoes, as the ones I was wearing needed to be replaced from all the running. I found out that my aches and pains could have been due to my shoes, so I'm hopeful the new shoes will help me feel strong again! These ones should take me all the way through to marathon day. I had some issues with the fit on my run today, but I'm trying out some lacing adjustments to help. If it doesn't, I'll just have to swap them out for a different pair at Fleet Feet until I find ones that are perfect!

I've been running nothing but easy-paced runs lately to try to minimize the stress on my joints. I'm very hopeful that I'll be feeling well enough with these new shoes to start some speed and hill training soon. I'm going to need some hill training for San Francisco, that's for sure!