Slow and Steady Wins the Race

One thing I struggle with on long runs is doing them at a slower pace. I’ve been told by Samantha and several other great sources that long runs should be done at a pace 60-90 seconds slower than your race pace. The reasoning behind this is because in training you only get up to 20 miles, so you need to have that time on your feet to be prepared for the full 26.2. While this makes perfect sense in my head (and my legs will thank me later), while I’m running on Saturday’s it’s hard to slow down knowing that I worked so hard to get to where I am. As I am taking those longer runs ‘easy’, it feels a little bit like I’m setting myself up to come in last.

A few years ago, before I started running regularly, I signed up for a mini triathlon in Batavia, Illinois. I didn’t train for it as well as I should have and as a result, I literally came in almost last place (see results here if you don’t believe me- I’m in 537th place). After finishing, I decided that I would work hard and train the right way for every race after.

With Batavia in mind, I will continue to train for the marathon and follow the schedule and trust that my hard work will pay off.

I did my Saturday 6 mile run on the treadmill. While I don’t love running in place for almost an hour, the view was amazing!

Team LUNGevity Fun Run

Yesterday after work Samantha and I headed over to Park Grill for 312’s Run to the Plaza. Not only was this a fun new way to get our workout in, we were also able to meet up with another Team LUNGevity runner (also a newbie marathoner)!

With Nike pacers to lead the way, we chose between a 5 mile run (fast, medium, slow) and a 3 mile run (fast, medium, slow). We decided on the 5 mile medium pace. Thankfully we had good weather overall with just a little rain as we headed out. Samantha talked while I heaved, as we ran along the lake shore and down past the Shedd. We did a turn around 2.5 miles in and stopped for everyone to grab water from the fountain.

When we got back to Park Grill we immediately headed for water and to check out the beer and food (naturally). They had a great selection of BBQ from pulled pork and cheddar dogs to sweet potato fries. We were able to catch up with our mini Team LUNGevity group and talk about training and the marathon. Towards the end they had some great raffle prizes, sadly none of us won — fingers crossed for next time!

Anyone interested in joining us next month? We will be signing up for the July 25th run! Registration begins July 9th.

Chicago Women’s Half Marathon Recap By Samantha Guelda

Samantha Guelda is Team LUNGevity’s event manager and an experienced marathoner! Take a look at what she had to say about Fleet Feet’s 2^nd Annual Chicago Women’s Half Marathon & 5K below:

With an abundance of races to be run in Chicago it’s hard to decide which to put your money, and training, into. On Sunday June 23^rd I toed the line with nearly 4,500 women who selected Fleet Feet’s 2^nd annual Chicago Women’s Half Marathon & 5K as their race. To say I was empowered would be an understatement.  After seeing so many strong women surround me at the start, hearing shouts of encouragement during the race, and giving congratulatory hugs (super-sweaty-salty-hugs, I should say) after crossing the finish line, I knew I chose a special race.

Mini-Recap:

I meet up with friends I’d made through the Fleet Feet Cheer Team before the race, wish everyone a good run, check my gear and make my way towards the corrals, enjoying the feel of a start line. The first miles, as always, go by fast. The beautiful view of the Chicago skyline to my right and an inviting Lake Michigan to my left keeping me entertained.  Just before mile 6 I hear “Hey! How ya feeling?” and turn to see a familiar face. The next 5 miles go by quickly as we chat and get to know each other a little better. I wave her on around mile 10 (I was doing this for fun, remember!) and hold on in the heat the last 5K. With the finish line in sight I pick up my pace as best I can and cross at 1:50:07, a respectable time in my book with it nearing 80 degrees! While the medal is gorgeous, the cold cloth I’m given feels just as good on the back of my neck.

The past 3 summers I’ve been training for a marathon and with none scheduled this year I’m having fun signing up for races on a whim. 5 years ago I completed my first half marathon and listened in amazement to those who were either using the half marathon as a training run or “just for fun”. That’s an amazing moment for every runner; when your long runs become your short runs. Completing the 13.1 mile distance used to be my goal, but when training for a full marathon that 13 mile distance became a cutback week run and, therefore, old hat. True, I’m not running that distance every week but running consistently means I’m able to complete 10Ks and half marathons “just for fun”. So that’s what I’m doing this year and I must say I’m having a blast!       -Samantha

Finished 1:50:07

9 Mile Weekend

Saturday morning I laced up and headed out the door for my 9 mile run. Since my last half marathon was in September, 9 miles seemed like quite a hike for me. As I ran down the lake shore though, and the miles crept up, it actually felt great! I ran comfortably, stopping only at mile 7 to take a drink of water from the Fleet Feet Water Station just as it started to drizzle. The light rain felt nice as I finished the last 2 miles and stretched before heading back inside.

Fleet Feet Water Station

9 miles done!

Red velvet waffles!

LUNGevity… Fight with me

Check out this blog from Breathe Deep Newark

Wiℓdfℓower Warriors

You can help me fight against Lung Cancer and show your support for someone you know, or for my father. 

Dad was in the ICU for a week.   The doctors said he was lucky to even be alive.  He had a massive blood clot in his lungs and pneumonia. They were also concerned about the ‘masses’ in his lungs.

He was officially diagnosed in February with Stage IIIB Lung Cancer.  (Read about Lung Cancer.) Let’s put it this way there are 9 stages in lung cancer.  He has stage 8.

As I assume with most people who are diagnosed with cancer, it came as a shock.  My father is only 56!! Lung Cancer!? A late stage!? In a single moment, it was as if years of his life were taken away.  Years from spending time with his grand-daughter McKinley, his wife, my sister, my brother, his brother…me…and many others. (To…

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If I Can Do It, So Can You

Let’s be real, Kara Goucher and Shalane Flanagan don’t have to worry about me taking their day jobs. The only reason I like to run, is because I love to eat more. But the idea of finishing a marathon (respectable time or not), is a really cool thing and doing it to raise money for a great cause is even better. Team LUNGevity has raised $8553.20 so far towards it’s goal of $25,000! To be a part of Team LUNGevity and secure one of the 6 spots left (of the sold out race) you can register here and send in your commitment form.

Aside from raising money for an amazing cause and running your butt off (literally), Team LUNGevity has monthly fun runs to participate in. Tuesday the 25th at 6pm we will be meeting at Park Grill for RUN312. For more details on this run or Team LUNGevity you can check out the Facebook page!

To learn more about LUNGevity and where the money raised goes, check out our website!

 

Jog Down Memory Lane

Saturday was my first ‘long run’ in marathon training so I laced up at 7:30am and ran the 8 miles around the suburbs where I grew up. Since most of my runs are done in the city, the suburbs was actually a refreshing change. I ran past my high school and continued going until I reached Spring Rock Park. For those of you who had Coach Metz in cross country, just reading the words ‘Spring Rock Park’ probably make you cringe. Since I’m training for a marathon, it might surprise some people to hear that while I did cross country in high school, I was terrible at it and dreaded any part that included actual running. I loved hanging out with my friends every day after school and going to team pasta parties, but when it came to running in meets or coming within 5 feet of Coach Metz, I was terrified. During the week we would do longer runs and 1-2 ‘track days’; sometimes those track days would be at the school and other days we would run to Spring Rock and do Indian Runs (I’m pretty sure these were made up to actually torture people). We would get in groups of 8-10 girls and run in a line around the park. While running, the girl at the end would have to sprint to the front of the line and so on. To me, this drill was hard, terrifying, and seemed to go on forever.

As I ran through Spring Rock Park on Saturday and headed back to my house, I thought about how far I have come since then. At some point (I think it’s part of that whole ‘growing up’ thing) I realized that the same part of cross country that scared me in high school, is the part I love now: you get out of running exactly what you put into it. You have to train hard to get the best results and you have no one to blame but yourself if you don’t reach your goals. While I don’t have Coach Metz to push me anymore, I have learned to push myself from dreading 3 mile runs to completing half marathons! I look forward to running now and I cannot wait to finish the marathon!

Lyons Township High School

Celebrating Father’s Day & my sister’s 8th grade graduation! After completing 8 miles
I didn’t feel bad at all pigging out at the party!

Breathe Deep Northshore

I wanted to share some of the photos and articles from Breathe Deep Northshore, a LUNGevity walk on April 28th. The walk was held in Deerfield, Illinois and raised over $170,000 for lung cancer research! Aside from the substantial amount of money raised, Breathe Deep Northshore really proved to be a community event with an overwhelming number of people, of all ages, lining up to volunteer, walk and show their support.

Check out this article from the Deerfield Patch

Watch the Highlight Video from the walk

Listen to Jill Feldman speak about lung cancer

Running Home

One of my biggest concerns about training for the marathon was fitting in all of my runs (my next concern was obviously what I would eat after I crossed the finish line). Thankfully, working for LUNGevity, we are able to run to and from work and even sometimes on our lunch breaks! Lucky for me, I live about 5.5 miles from work. . . enough to get my scheduled 5 mile run in and end at Chipolte to pick up dinner!

Samantha and I in front of the Breathe Deep North Shore rock picture, ready to run!

Perfect day for a run a long the Lakeshore

5 miles done!

Well deserved burrito bowl with brown rice, chicken, mild salsa, lettuce, and guacamole

Back on My Feet

A few months ago I started running with Back on My Feet, an organization I was introduced to by Samantha. Now, let me clarify by saying that I hibernated through the cold winter and nasty rain and then circled back up last week when it was sunny and warm again. Thankfully I was welcomed with open arms and jumped right in for the 5:45am run Wednesday.

This mornings run was a choice between 1.1 and 3.3 miles so I chose the latter. Even though we meet at 5:45am, it’s something I really look forward to each week (and I really recommend joining if you can). Running in a group has been much more beneficial to me than I ever could have imagined. While I don’t think I could handle doing my longer runs with anyone (or actually, they probably wouldn’t be able to deal with me), the shorter 2 – 5 mile runs are great! Having a group to meet in the morning gives me extra motivation to get out there instead of hitting the snooze button and I can pick the brains of people who have several marathons under their belts! Plus, it’s harder to slack off when you’re with other people!