Pesach Prep Test Kitchen Part II
Valuable lessons learned during last Sunday's long run:
1. Use orange juice not grape juice for your drink base (the acid helps your body to absorb what it needs). Grape juice was a huge failure for me
2. Honey in a goo flask is easier than small packets - I needed to hit the honey more often on this run than with goo but found it easier to eat and less upsetting for my stomach. I'm also wondering about how royal jelly would impact a run....I'll try that one later this summer
3. Sweet potato is too fiberous -- I'm going to stick with regular potato slices/kugel for my pre-race eats.
Planning my food ahead of time is going to be a key to successful running on Marathon Monday. I didn't plan ahead for my dry run this past weekend and made whatever we had the ingredients for --- I paid the price during my run. I don't think you need to obsess about what you eat race weekend but giving it some thought ahead of time would be wise.
If you are running during pesach, let us all know how things are going -- I know that some of you are running and keeping pesach....
The latest update
I did my second to last long run this past Sunday. It was a complete weekend of testing for the marathon. Yes, I subjected my very patient friends to a Shabbos meal that would be similar to what I'll eat during Passover (minus the ring-gels, I just can't bring myself to go through that twice!) I put honey in my goo flask and set out for a 19 mile run. Along the way, I did some off road running in the Fells and then missed a turn on my route and some how ended up in Winchester. Luckily, I knew roughly where I was (have I mentioned my really excellent internal GPS system?) and ended up running back through Medford along the Mystic Reservation.
Talk about a beautiful return trip -more hills on the lost part of my route than I had planned but the return trip by the lakes was gorgeous! There were ducks and geese out, the weather was cloudy and not too hot -- a perfect day for a long run. Hopefully, I can find an equally beautiful route for my last long training run before the big day.
At this point, I'm starting to think about getting in quality runs and cross-training this week and tapering next week through marathon weekend. I also want to make sure I get enough sleep and stay hydrated. That will be a tough task with school and Pesach (Passover) preparations/frantic cleaning.
In the meantime, we had a great fundraiser at O'Naturals in Davis Square tonight. Thanks to everyone who came out! In addition to the 10% of sales donated by O'Naturals, I raised another $70 or so while there. Figaro's by South Station in Boston is still collecting donations. I'll let you know totals as soon as I hear.
Another round of fundraising letters/emails will go out this week. I don't think that I'm going to come anywhere close to the 10K goal I set but would like to try to raise as much money as possible between now and the end of May. Thanks to everyone who has given!
That's it for now -- I'm heading to bed (it's only 8:30 and I can go to bed -- YAY! A parent's dream!)
BIB NUMBER!!!!
18639That is my marathon bib number. Just go to
www.bostonmarathon.org on race day and you can track my progress!
Bone Crushing Headache
I started my medication for depression over the weekend and have had a bout of nausea and an off and on headache for 2 days -- all expected side effects that should go away in a few days. Unfortunately, it is 4 weeks minus a day until the marathon so I had to get out there and do a run. This is especially true because I didn't workout yesterday or Sunday (unless you count lots of walking carrying a 15# Speedy)! I'm hopeful that the meds will positively impact my battle with depression. I'm still less than thrilled about taking them but I had to do something. For now, I have friends checking in and Shabbat is rapidly approaching so I can have some time to relax (kind of relax I should say).
As for running this week, I have a big 20-22 mile run on Sunday so I'll run again on Friday for 5 nice easy miles and do some cross training. The anxiety is kicking into high gear because I'm so UNDER TRAINED and worried that the course is going to chew me up and spit me out. I must remember to stick to the training plan, cramming at this stage of the game doesn't help --- can someone write that on my forehead for me so that when I look in the mirror that is what I see??? Ack, 4 weeks -- not much time!
Gut Check
Yesterday was a gut check run --the makeup run from Monday's bailout in NC. I did 19 on the course and back to my house. It took a while for the anxiety of a bad training run to work its way out of my system but once that happened, it was quite enjoyable. There were a number of runners on course doing some of the last long runs before race day.
I turned around at Walnut St. so that I could get a good look at the
John Kelley statue. It was the first time I've seen it since I'm always coming from the opposite direction. The turnaround point was perfect for giving me the extra kick I needed to head back up Heartbreak Hill. In all honesty, my experience has been that Heartbreak Hill isn't that bad of an uphill -- I have had a much more significant challenge feeling comfortable on the downhills that make up much of Boston's course. The impact of that much downhill on my leg muscles and my surgically repaired knee is a bigger problem. This year, I need to remember to start out slower than I'd like to that the sharp downhill followed by an almost imperceptible uphill going from Wellesley into Newton Lower falls along with the last 4 miles at Boston doesn't hurt too much.
At this point, I'm still not feeling ready for race day but I'm feeling better than I was last week -- a few more long runs to go and lots of cross training will hopefully help me to win the all important mental race.
In the meantime,
Speedy Ima and I are running a 5k tomorrow. There is a slight chance that I may have to pull out in order to watch Speedy while Speedy Ima and some of my friends run but hopefully, we'll all be out there running. I'm not looking to go too fast this time - with a 19 mile run yesterday, I'm trying to focus on enjoying the run and allowing my body to recover. This summer I'll focus on getting back to 6 minute miles for my 5k pace -- for now, I just don't want a repeat of last year's pulled hamstring 3 weeks before Boston.
Secret Pesach Marathon Fuel???
I was wandering the aisles of the local grocery store this evening after going to the gym when I noticed that they had put out Pesach products already. Like most Jews, I have a few items I look forward to from year to year and others that I would just like to forget exist (like Ring-gels..sorry David!). One of the things I look forward to are chocolate covered marshmellow cookie things. I only eat them once a year and while standing in front of them and telling myself "it isn't Pesach yet, you have to wait" I realized that they might be my secret power fuel for the marathon....which, of course, means that I have to test them on this week's long run.
I'll keep you posted...at the very least, I'm going to enjoy eating the leftovers!
Back in Boston
Well, we got back from NC yesterday and arrived home to snow flurries and chilly weather today. I'm looking forward to a long run on Friday (to make up for "the incident" on Monday). I hit the gym after work for a good elliptical workout and will be back tomorrow for a little weightlifting.
The nerves are starting to hit about the marathon. I haven't put nearly as much work and time into this year's training as I would have liked. I'm trying hard to think about this as a step to a higher fitness level and better running during the summer/fall season but it can be tough. Worst comes to worst and I suppose run/walking is better than a DNF but it ain't what I'm shooting for! Hopefully, the long runs will go well from here on out and things will be okay come race day.
In the meantime, I'm running a 5k on Sunday that should be fun. I'm not going out to break any speed records - just a nice St. Paddy's day race with a beer afterwards. A number of my friends are running the race so it will be nice to celebrate a run with them. More importantly, it is
Speedy Ima's first race since Speedy's delivery!! Go Speedy Ima, Go!
Yankified
My grandmother is constantly telling me that I have been "Yankified" when she asks me to slow down when I talk or complains that I go to work when there is snow in Boston. Normally, I laugh and ignore her. I've run 2 times since I arrived in NC and now, after wilting in the mid-80s heat while running, I believe her.
On Thursday, I ran 13 miles in Charlotte's concrete sidewalk jungle (you can't run in the road because of traffic and the fact that Southerner's don't know what to do with runners or bikers except smush them). During the run, I had to stop and refill my waterbottle at a fountain outside of someone's house. It was a lovely setup -- a nice bench in the shade, a dog bowl chained to the water fountain base and a nice faucet for grabbing a drink. It was 82 degrees in full sun on the course and what I really wanted to do was fill the water bottle and take a nap on the bench but I pushed on. I was slow but managed to get the mileage in feeling like I had just completed a marathon and needing a nap.
Today, I didn't fare as well. In fact, after 8 miles I called my partner to say "come pick me up."
BONK!! I should have known that the run wasn't going to go well when I stepped out into the 85+ degree sun only to have to run back and get my route map after a mile. Next, in my rush, I closed the screen door on my ankle leaving a nice imprint on the little knobs. Finally, out on the route I started to relax into things trying hard not to think about the sun/heat. After running in the teens and twentys all winter, 80+ is just brutal. About 3 miles in, my digestive system started to threaten rebellion. A mile or so later, I wasn't paying attention to the ground under my feet and stepped onto a very dead and decomposing racoon -- you could only make out the striped tail. At that point, my brain started to join my digestive tracts protest. Finally, after pushing 4 more miles, my digestive system fully rebelled and I gave it up. This one, I'm calling a mid-week run and will do the long run back in Boston later in the week. There are times when you can push through a run -- this clearly was not one of them.
So, yes grandmother, I have been "Yankified" -- I live in a place where I only see raccoons on snowy, very early morning trash day runs when the weather is in the teens. And frankly, I think my running is safer that way. I'll be staying above the Mason-Dixon line with the rest of the folks you think of as a little "off."
The M-Word...
So I met on Friday with a shrink about starting medication to treat my depression and PTSD symptoms. As I mentioned previously, I've been battling depression for quite a while now but things have just gotten to the point that I can't fight it without a little additional help. In the course of trying to decide on meds vs. no meds, I was really concerned with the possibility of anything interferring with my running. Luckily, the medication that I'll be taking doesn't usually cause weight gain, though it can cause sluggishness at first in some people.
We are heading down South later in the week to visit our families so I'm going to hold off on starting a new medication until after the trip. I don't see any point in risking an allergic/bad reaction and ruining a week of warm weather running and spending time with the family. Especially when my stress level should be lower which will hopefully make interacting with the outside world a little less paralyzing....in the meantime, I've got to manage to get through one more day at my office (not a small feat these days!).
On the upside, yesterday's run was good for the most part. My feet were hurting by the end because I failed to think about running surfaces when I mapped my route and ended up running on concrete, cobble, and slate for much of the run. I was worried that they would hurt this morning but it seems that the post-run foot massage did the trick.
The only adventure of the evening was a near decapitation of my head by a 8-10 year old boy standing on the steps of a brownstone with his mother! He smiled as I passed and I smiled back, next thing I know a 2 foot stick is buzzing my head (yes, I could feel the breeze) and bouncing off of a near by car. He had to have launched the stick 15-20 feet from the top step. I opted to keep running as I heard his mother crying and screaming "Not at people, you don't throw the stick at people!" For me, that begs the question - what does he normally throw his sticks at? I hate to think...
Well, that's it for now...the next post will be from the warm, hopefully sunny south. The forecast is for 70s-80s while we are there which is a significant change from the weather here in New England of later...until then, waddle on...
Bush proposes cuts in cancer funding for FY07
The President's administration has proposed a $40 million cut in cancer research for the FY2007 budget. Federal funding of cancer research has declined since 2003, despite the federal government's goal to end all cancer deaths by 2015. In addition to the cuts to cancer research, the administration has also proposed a $1.4 million cut to the National Breast and Cervical Cancer Early Detection Program -- this program provides FREE cancer screenings for low-income and uninsured women. At it's current funding level, the program is only able to assist 1 in 5 women -- a funding increase would be significantly more appropriate (and likely long term cost saving) than a cut to this program.
Private fundraising, while important, can only do so much. Researchers, like those at Dana-Farber, need these valuable federal dollars to find new options for cancer treatment. Without these dollars, the 2015 target for ending deaths from cancer is slipping further and further away. Without free early detection, thousands of women risk more significant and costly treatments (difficult to afford while living in poverty or without healthcare), and what is worse, the lack of early detection will cost some of these women their lives.
Take a moment to contact your government officials. Contact local advocacy groups or Livestrong.org to find out how you can make your voice hear to prevent these cuts.
An Empty Place at the Starting Line...
This morning's Boston Globe carried the
story of Dan Peterson, a 24 time Boston Marathoner hoping to make it long enough in his battle against cancer to start a 25th Boston this April. A little while after I read the story, Boston.com updated its website: Dan Peterson passed away at his home this morning. His friends will be carrying his number along the route of this year's marathon.
Even for those of us who didn't know him this provides us with the perspective to keep pounding out those miles and raising the dollars necessary to reach our ultimate finish line -- a world without cancer.
