Saturday Long Run

Met with Team in Training at UTC park in La Jolla this morning to run 5.2 miles. I was honored to be asked to tell my mission statement to the team, so I stood up on a picnic bench and talked about my Dad and his bout with leukemia. How I was able to not cry is absolutely beyond me- the sunglasses help. I was able to talk a little about him and how much I and my family appreciate all the hard work all the Team in Training members are doing to fundraise to find a cure. The picture above shows me standing on the park bench, telling everyone how much it touches my heart. I was also honored to have my sister and husband there to support me. Afterwards all these people said how touching my speech was, and they were so sorry for my loss...which is bizarre to hear after all this time but no less appreciated.

I wish I could say the 5.2 miles went as smoothly as my speech! We ran on the side streets of La Jolla, which is SO beautiful, and thankfully the first half was mainly downhill. At the 2 mile mark there was a car set up with water and citromax and twizzlers so it was nice to chill out for a bit! We then went on the bike path, and almost got crushed by bikes- so jealous of them whizzing by! My coach, Ronnie, ran with me for a bit (as I always seem to bring up the rear) and my form and ease of running improved so much just by running next to him! After about 3 miles I met up with some runners that started walking, and stayed with them for a bit, then about 1/2 mile before the end ran with the assistant coach up the hill to the finish.

I wish I could say I feel great...this marathon training is really beating up my body. I came home and took a nap then a long bath with epson salt, then another nap, ha ha ha! Going up the stairs I suddenly got a NEW symptom- my left achilles heel feels like there's a rubber band on it! Like it's rolling on my heel! WHOA! I looked it up and the diagnosis online (for what it's worth) says that it's probably Achilles Tendonitis, which is brought on by overuse (no surprise there!) GEEZ! Between my shin splints and cramping calfs and now this?! It said to give it a bit of rest, ice it when training, lay off the hills for a bit, my sole might be too hard, and to stay away from hard surfaces for a while. Well, I'm going for a victory lap tonight at Stone Brewery, yay!