I’ve given this blasted cold four days of rest, with no running or swimming in that time. Thursday I started to feel a lot better though, so today I decided enough was enough. I put on my new shoes, zipped up a hoodie for extra warmth, and headed out for a slow, easy run through the neighborhood. I did 25 minutes of jogging without stopping, and though it didn’t feel as easy as some of my recent runs, it wasn’t too difficult either. I didn’t start hacking or coughing or anything. And the burgeoning sinus headache I’d felt when I woke up? Completely disappeared. (If you’d told me six months ago that running could actually make me feel better, I’d never have believed you.) I’m still planning to do the Mother’s Day 8K on Sunday, but I’m not going to kill myself trying to get a PB or anything. It’s all about Sunday the 18th, and my goal right now is just to hold it together for nine more days and give myself the best chance to finish the half-marathon.

Oh. And my race pack came in the mail last night. I’ve got my official race number (#508, baby! I must have gotten in early) and my timing chip. Seeing them on the dining room table suddenly made it all seem very real. Nine more days.

The good – actually GREAT – news is that I know I can run a half-marathon. I know this because I successfully ran 18.4km yesterday afternoon! (That’s nearly 11.5 miles.) And at the end, I honestly felt like I could’ve easily gone all the way to 21km, were it not for my sore back. I ran the distance pretty slowly (you’ll see why in a minute), taking frequent walk breaks and not pushing too hard. Still, I wasn’t far off the pace I need to finish in 2:30. I was well-hydrated and carried a water bottle with me, which I sipped on frequently. I also had my first trial of using an energy supplement. At the 6km mark, I had half a chocolate PowerBar gel and then finished it off at the 12km mark. It tasted like medicated chocolate toothpaste. The biggest effect it seemed to have was mental. At the end of the run, I just felt a lot more clear-headed than I had at the same point last week. I never realized how fuzzy and muddled my brain gets after 90 minutes of running. This time I just felt way more energetic and aware. With regards to my body, I didn’t notice any immediate jolt or anything, but I definitely had more energy in the tank at the end of this run. Like I said, I was honestly toying with going the whole distance. I was still tired and sore, but I didn’t feel like I was falling apart. (I’m also happy to report that the gel didn’t give me any stomach problems, as some people seem to have. I did get a bad stitch at the 7km mark, which I attributed to gulping down too much water to help digest the gel.) So all in all, this was a massive confidence boost before the race in two weeks.

And now the bad news. I’ve caught a cold. I’d been coughing a bit at night last week, but I assumed it was just irritation from the endoscopy. Sunday morning I woke up with the trifecta of headache, sore throat, and stuffy nose. Great. I spent the whole day sucking down water and trying to decide whether I should go for the run or not. I knew that the timing wasn’t that bad, because I’ve got two weeks to shake this thing before the actual race. But this was pretty much my last chance for a really long run, and I felt like I really needed that to mentally prepare. So would running make it worse? Since all my symptoms were “above the neck” (classic runner’s justification), I decided to go for it. So I dosed up on paracetamol and headed out. I took it easy on the run but I was happy to find that I still felt pretty good. My stomach got a little acidic but it was manageable. I even braved a few minutes in an ice bath when I got home to help out my legs. I feel pretty awful today, but I’m still glad I did it. Now I just have to concentrate on getting well as soon as possible. Anybody got any good home remedies for a cold?

I feel great. I wanted to skip my swimming lesson last night, but the Snook urged me to go. I’m glad I listened to him. It felt good to get back to my training and stop letting my stomach dictate my life. This morning I headed out for my first run of the week, an easy 5K around the neighbourhood before work. Along the way I listened to the most recent episode of Phedippidations, which Steve recorded during this past Monday’s Boston Marathon. How hard-core is that?! He was running on an injured ankle (which he himself admits wasn’t very smart), but he persevered and finished in less than five hours. It was really inspiring to listen to his updates every mile and to marvel at how far he was pushing himself. Yes, his podcasts get a little cheesy and self-important at times with all the affirmations and cosmic hoo-ha, but when I’m out running, that really appeals to me. And dude, if/when I ever finish my first marathon, I’m sure I’ll hear the Carmina Burana playing in my head too…

Anyway, at the end of the podcast Steve mentioned the World Wide Half Marathon. The idea is that people around the world sign up to run a half-marathon (or a 5K) sometime around the weekend of October 11-12. I was checking the Cool Running calendar to see what’s on that month… and I discovered that the Melbourne Marathon (and half marathon) is that weekend. Sounds like a plan right? I can’t wait to do a lap inside the MCG!

Many thanks to Jeff and Allan for the huge shout-out they gave me on the latest episode of Running with the Pack. They had some great advice for my training, and it was reassuring to know that they’re on my side with regards to the time cut-off. Thanks guys!

I’m asking MetaFilter for advice about energy gels and running shoes…

(Actually, it’s more like “StomachBlog” at this point.) After a series of some pretty good runs last week, I went out for my 10K on Sunday and it completely SUCKED. Within five minutes, the right side of my lower back was seizing up and throbbing with every step. I still managed to do 9K, but only by stopping every five minutes to attempt to stretch it out. It killed. I immediately fired off an email to my physio, who scheduled me in for an appointment Wednesday night. When I got there, I gave him an update about my stomach ulcer and he immediately tied the two together. According to him, my body is probably “in a state of inflammation,” and he didn’t want do any serious massage for fear of making it worse. He did work into my sides a bit (above my hips), which was incredibly tense and painful. Oddly, releasing that tension made me feel better (in my stomach) almost immediately. He says they’re my “worry” muscles, and tensing them (from stress or from pain) might be contributing to the lower back pain. I went out for a slow 5K this morning, and the change was really noticeable. I did feel a bit sluggish through the last mile, but at least I didn’t have to stop and stretch at every light pole. Two steps forward, one step back…

As of today, I am officially FOUR WEEKS away from the Sydney Half-Marathon. I’ve already run three times this week, so I’m going to cut back the distance on my long run today and go for a timed 10K just to see where I’m at. Then I’m hoping to do my first 10-miler on Sunday the 27th, and my longest pre-race run, an 11-miler, on Sunday the 4th of May. (I’m hoping that race day adrenaline will be enough to push me through the final two miles.) For the last weekend pre-race, I’ve just signed up to do the Mother’s Day Classic (8K fun run) on the 11th. I figure that should be a nice easy way to get fired up before the big day on the 18th.

As for my goals, first and foremost I want make the 11km 75:00 cutoff point. Once I do that, my goal is just to finish. If pressed to set a time goal, I’d have to say that finishing in less than 2.5 hours would be fantastic. That would bring me in just before Norma Wallett’s time of 152:52 from last year, when she was the oldest competitor (at 78!) to finish the race. So yeah, I’d like to match Norma’s pace. 🙂

In spite of my ongoing ulcer issues, I’ve still managed a couple good runs this week. I went out Tuesday morning for a “recovery” run, aiming to run at a nice slow pace for 40 minutes without stopping. I ended up doing over 6km, and it felt surprisingly easy the whole way. I didn’t even start to get winded til the very last bit. To my utter astonishment, I averaged 6:46 per kilometer, which works out to a 34:00 5K time! And I wasn’t even trying! This is well within the pace I need to keep for the half-marathon next month. I decided to build upon this with some “cadence drills” this morning. I got these from Jeff Galloway, and it’s basically an easy form of interval training. I started by walking and jogging 10 minutes to warm up. Then I ran at a normal pace and timed myself for 30 seconds, counting each time my left foot touched the ground. I think it was 34 this first time. Then each subsequent repetition, you try to increase that number a bit. So I alternated with 30 seconds of sprinting (and counting my steps) with a minute or so of walking to recover. I did this for about a mile and managed to get my count up to 50! I felt a bit silly, like the Road Runner with my legs flying in a blur. But I also felt pretty fast! Then I finished by jogging the last fifteen minutes home.

Also – I got a shoutout on the latest episode of the Brandon’s Marathon podcast! That was fun.

I had a great long run today. I set the iPod workout to 100 minutes and headed off towards Centennial Park. I was doing 4 minutes running / 1 minute walking, and that seemed to work pretty well. I managed two full laps around the park before heading home, which ended up being nearly 14km in total. (Hey, that’s 2/3 of the distance of the half-marathon! I’m nearly there.) The real improvement was in my hydration level. I started drinking water the night before and kept it up throughout the morning today, and on the run I hit every water fountain in the park. It was GREAT! I really only felt dry and thirsty in the last twenty minutes (when I was farthest from a fountain). My legs felt pretty good while I was running – no injuries to report – but by the end, I could tell I’d be sore and hurting afterwards. I’ll take a day or two to rest and recover…

Exer-ma-cise
Now that I have a slightly longer commute to work (about 40 minutes, 15-20 of which is on the train), I’ve been exploring the fun world of running podcasts. I first found the guys over at Running With the Pack, who are both experienced runners training for a marathon. Through them, I found Brandon of Brandon’s Marathon, who is also training for a marathon but is much closer to my fitness level. These guys are honestly really inspiring to me. They all give great general information and advice for running, but it’s hearing about their training that gives me fuel for those long weekend runs. Thanks, guys!

So anyway, I went for a deliberately short run today with a goal of pushing my speed a bit. I walked and jogged a mile to warm up, then I pushed it for a full mile as best I could. (Not a full-on sprint, but a pace that I felt I could still manage.) Then I jogged the rest of the way home. I ended up getting a new PB for the mile… by one second! Since I’m pretty sure the previous time was from the City 2 Surf (ie race conditions), I’ll take this as a win. Then tonight I went for my swimming lesson, and I have to say, I’m getting a lot better! I still have a tendency to lift my head too much when I breathe, but my stroke is starting to feel more natural. I still have to rest after each length of the pool, but at least I’m not thrashing like a washing machine anymore. 🙂