"Do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit, Who is in you, Whom you have received from God? ... So use every part of your body to give glory back to God..." 1 Corinthians 6:19-20

Tuesday, June 22, 2021

Charlevoix Marathon Recap.

"I'm always nervous. If I wasn't nervous, it would be weird. I get the same feeling at all the big races. It's part of the routine, and I accept it. It means I'm there and I am ready."
Allyson Felix, Olympic Gold and Silver Medalist 


Saturdays Charlevoix Marathon was not my first marathon and to be honest I have lost track of what number it is, numbers and memory have never been my strong suit! 

Before cancer I was just cruising through life. 
I was not done living when I was diagnosed with TNBC. 
I still had more dreams. 
How was I going to run again? Would I be able to run the way I used to? 
I struggled emotionally. After a few weeks, I decided I would read about other athletes with cancer and study their training. 
 In between chemo, radiation and multiple surgeries and a very broken body I questioned my dreams. I kept moving whether it was biking, hiking, going to the gym or running in the capacity my body allowed me. 
I tried to navigate myself off of the pity pot and continued to reach for optimism. 

Charlevoix Marathon was a dream I had. 
My ugly is Gods Glory. I saw myself running again, running strong again. 
But the only way to achieve that was to not quit and work harder than I had in years. 

Charlevoix Marathon:
Start: 6am
My alarm went off at 4:15 am. I hit the snooze only once before jumping out of bed to get the coffee going for Lacey and I. 
I had taken a "PM" the night before to help me sleep, however my measly 4 hours of sleep was as good as it got. I had everything laid out, I grabbed my coffee, the bagel Chris gave me and began to get ready hoping I would be able to go poo poo. 

Chris was kind enough to drive us last minute. We were staying in the Bay Inn in Petoskey, 14 miles away. Funny thing, the race course actually turned around just a couple miles from our hotel. 

STARTING LINE: 
Runners, runners everywhere! The music was loud, the sun was shining, the temps were perfect at 59'. 
Runners were shoulder to shoulder, laughter and excitement surrounded us. 
We saw Antonio and Doug and jumped in the corral behind the 3:45min/mi pacer. I had to pee so bad but knew I didn't have time to wait in a port-a-jon line so I tried to ignore it in all the hype. 
As the National Anthem was being sang I closed my eyes and prayed. I humbly prayed for favor. 

READY, SET, GO
We separated quickly from Doug and Antonio who tucked in behind the pacers. 
GOAL "C" s a Boston Qualifying time, not a time I knew I would get in with but the official time, 3h50min. 
GOAL "B" was 3:49, this was a 8:44/mi. 
GOAL "A" was a frightful secret to many, 3:45. My dream goal. 

Within the first 2 miles we found Joel, a runner friend of mine from CRU. It was his first marathon. We discovered his goal was similar to my "C" goal so we thought we would stay with him and hope to encourage and help him. 
Joel was doing incredible but I was getting concerned I might be running too fast. 
Mile 1, I was proud of myself seeing a 8:40min/mi, but then mile two was a 8:16 min/mi. I slowed it back down the next 3 miles at a 8:54, 8:39 and a 8:52. 
The course it relatively flat and Lake Michigan was beautiful when we finally ran next to it at mile 6ish. 
Our pace sped up again and I didn't slow back again until mile 9. We had made a few friends out there and we were chatting it up. Joels family were cheering him on almost every 2 miles. Their motivation inspired you to move faster. 
Mile 10, I hit my targeted pace and quietly prayed I could hold it to the finish line. The  temps were warming up and I had some of the elevation rehearsed in my head that I would have to do again on the way back. 
I just wanted to get to the turn around. 

HALF WAY POINT. We all made it to the 13.1 turn around. Joel, Lacey and I were still laughing it up. I was feeling good, just scared I would fall apart any moment. 
We were concealed in between the trees most of the time, hidden from the sun. 
Joel began to break away, running strong. I hit mile 13 at 8:41 and 14 at a 8:46. Doubt was seeping in. Doubt and fear. My body felt pretty good but I was still scared of the pain that would be up ahead of me. I fumbled for my IPHONE. My hands were sweaty and sticky from GU's as I tried to find a playlist to revive me. 
About mile 15, as Lacey shared a GU with me she said she didn't know of she would be able to hold on to the pace all the way to the finish. 
"Lacey, GET me to 20, just get me to 20 miles..." I asked. I knew I was asking a lot. Lacey had only trained the last 8 weeks but I knew she would help me. 

I still had to pee. "Lacey, I think I just tinkled, ohh no, when it happens the flood gates are going to open..." 
Thank God Joel was still ahead of us. At mile 18, there was no holding it, no stopping it, no slowing it down, my bladder exploded. Lacey couldn't stop laughing. She could hardly breath as she watched my shorts begin to drip like a three year old. Then I got tickled laughing as my shoes squeaked with pee pee. I looked around me, "Lacey, can you tell...." she could hardly respond, "OHH YEAH!" she laughed now holding herself from peeing herself too. 

We lost Joel around mile 19. 
Mile 20, with my music loud I went to say something to Lacey and she was gone too. 

Mile 20, where the race begins. 
Truth be told I had been steadily holding a sub 8:30min/mi. 
I prayed again. I gave thanks for every perfect detail and asked God to bless me with perseverance. 
"Hold on Nita, Hold on!" 
The sun was beating on me, I was running on the bridge when my ankle was not responding well. 
As I came off the wooden bridge, I remembered the incline I had ahead of me. I took a deep breath and headed up the half mile incline. 
1, 2 ,3 people, I kept passing all the runners that had passed me the first 5 miles. As I came onto mile 22, I saw Chris. 
I pierced my eyes on his florescent yellow shirt and dug deep to catch him, 8:32, 8:24, 8:21 min/miles to catch him. I reached him at mile 24, a 8:15min/mi. I tried to drag him with me but my pace was dialed in and I knew I had to hold it. 
It was a finish like no others. DOWNHILL. I was so tired, my quads were on fire but I knew I had to bring it in. I continued to pass runners, "Your doing great, keep moving.." I would say as I passed another runner. I felt my belly flip the last half a mile. I felt the vomit churning. 
I came into the downtown of Charlevoix. I saw people on both side cheering me on, "You look so strong, your almost there." 
I saw the Finish Line, I tried not to face plant as I turned my legs over. 
I crossed the mats with pure JOY. 
I heard my name, I felt the tears, I swallowed back my sour belly and saw Debbie M. like an angel cheering me on. I couldn't hear or  think, she smiled at me, brought me water and was so kind. 
I closed my eyes, "OH LORD, thank you, thank you." 


Each minute that passed another friend of mine came in, Chris, Lacey, Nicole, Doug, Antonio, and Joel, all a sub 4 hour marathon. 

In Conclusion. I stepped to the starting line confident in my training. I felt courageous, setting goals that scared me, realistic yes, but just out of reach. I knew I had to be resilient, holding my resent failures close. Using them as a training tool to work harder and overcome. 
KEEP DREAMING. 
I needed to feel Alive again. I wanted to qualify for Boston because it represented strength again to me. I don't care if I get in or not. It was just a representation of OVERCOMING. 

Thank you to Chris and Lacey for the training runs the last several weeks. 
Congrats to all those that ran Charlevoix, Joel, Chris, Nicole, Christina, Brian, his first marathon too, Trisha, Tracy Lynn, Joe B, Antonio, Doug, Lacey, the Wickams and  Kathy. 
You all did great! 
Lacey, Chris, Debbie, Doug, Me, Nicole and Antonio

Lacey, Doug, Me, Antonio, and Joel

"The one training tool I couldn't live without is my training partners. It's so much easier to get out the door when you have someone to run with and push you on workout days."
 Kim Smith, 3 time Olympian 
Anita~

Glory To God. 


Sunday, June 13, 2021

Phone it in or..Charlevoix T-6


"Shift from thinking to feeling-feel yourself accomplishing your goal. Take that feeling out of your head and put it into your heart. Embrace it as reality." 
Erin Taylor, founder and head coach of Jasyoga 

The adventure is at single digits. Charlevoix Marathon T-6 days. 

The great debate; fight with every cell in me to see what I have, 
OR play it safe, call it in,  run Nita run, save a little back for fun, smiles and no great failure?
If you don't set your goals too high then you never fall that hard.  
The harder you fall, the more it hurts. 

What to do? 
We must ask ourselves this a dozen times a day. 

Just the thought of lining up to the starting line rattles me. The early morning sun creeping over us as the runners line up, quickly filling up the corrals. The clamor of excited runners chattering, laughing and studying you. You see the eyes look you over and settle in on your bib. In seconds, you notice they are  exploring your age and distance and then their eyes glance back at you, matching it all together. 
You just smile. 

That's what I do. I smile. 

Nervous, I smile. 
Anxious, I smile.
Excited. I smile. 

In 6 days,  I will be running next to Lacey. I am so tickled. 
We had our final long run, a whopping 8 miles Saturday. We met at GAC, starting slow we quickly picked up our pace. We were all a bit foot loose and fancy. Chris kept gauge on our pace reminding us to slow it down. 
I was happy we had started early and finished early as the temps kept getting hotter. 

Lacey, Chris and I, That's a wrap!


There is Joy in the Journey. 
I find myself trying not to get discouraged as I have tried to clean up my marathon failure back in February. 
Charlevoix is a chance to recover. It is a out and back, Lacey, Chris, Antonio and Doug are going to be lined up with me. I am really hoping I don't give Doug and Antonio any material to tease me and hoping they give me some so I can tease them! 
The weather looks AWESOME! 71'! 
I have had so much fun training for Charlevoix with these two. It felt great to feel a little bit of normalcy with last few weeks. Between feeling human again, and Covid taking a back burner running gave me so much joy. 
Timing is everything. There is a season for everything and a time for every matter under the heavens, Ecc. 3:1. 


Course Description: "All courses start and end at the Draw Bridge in downtown Charlevoix.  The course is primarily fast and flat, unless you're from Florida, then you will feel like you're climbing Everest around the 11 mile mark.  We have an incredibly high rate of Boston Marathon qualifying times  (18% of the entire field) on this course because it is very fast. 
The courses venture through the historic neighborhoods of Charlevoix which provides great shade especially early in the morning, and then out onto our paved trail system which follows the shoreline of Lake Michigan.  There is approximately four miles of running on our wooden bridge which is a great relief for the knees!  All courses are an out-and-back style course which keeps the course feeling energetic but not over crowded." 


RUNDOWN:
Monday: 6miles
Tuesday:REST
Wednesday: 4m
Thursday: 14.5 ( Laceys long run) 
Friday: REST
Saturday: 8.3
Sunday: REST
TOTAL MILES: 32.8

Final touches: 
I have my shorts for the marathon. I have to find a white tank top now. I will try to share it later this week when it is all put together. Lacey and I decided to sneak out early! we are leaving now Thursday night. 
Anyone have any suggestions on a good place to eat in Charlevoix or Petoskey?
So do I phone it in for fun, or die trying to see what is in the tank? 

Anita~



Monday, June 7, 2021

Preparing for Charlevoix Marathon: Simple list.

 "Fear is gradually replaced by excitement and a simple desire to see what you can do on the day." Lauren Fleshman



Charlevoix Marathon is Saturday June 19th. I am not going to lie. I am nervous. I always get nervous when I have a goal. And I get especially nervous when I have already failed that goal already once this year. 

THE GOAL: 3h 49min. 

THE FEARS:
  1. That I am not going to be able to accomplish it. 
  2. That I am washed up, beat up and burnt out and my faster marathon days are gone. 
  3. That I need to accept reality, start acting my age & if I fail again maybe I should start knitting. 
MY HOPES:
  1. That the weather would be kind to us at 6am, our start time. 
  2. My legs and lungs would work like they did in my 30's. 
  3. That I don't get lost or stung by any jelly fish....:) (A1A)
  4. That nobody notices when I pee my pants at mile 20. 
MY PREPERATIONS: 
  1. This year, I have ran a marathon in February & a 50k in April. 
  2. I did Yasso 800's twice hitting my target pace. sucks
  3. I scheduled my prerace massage next week. 
  4. May 24-30=38 miles, May 31-June 6= 69miles (step back week, last peak week)
  5. Hill repeats, targeted pace for 12 miler and biking to cross train. sucks
  6. I purchased my nutrition for race day and new sunglasses!
MY FAILURES
  1. I ran too may miles this week. I needed extra mental health miles this week. It was better than throat punching people or drowning in emo tears. 
MY DIET
  1. Protein smoothies after every workout, a MUST and a Probiotic. 
  2. Whole wheat waffles in the morning...just started this lil routine. 
  3. Been drinking water...(I only like water with coffee grounds in it) 
MY TO-DO
  1. Figure out my race outfit
  2. Work on play list
  3. Figure out if I am going to carry my own water.
Rundown:
T-12 days. 
I did my 12 miler on the trails at Holly Rec. The training program called for 12 miles. Chris wanted to change it up and run trails at Holly rec, 2 loops, 2 hour 15 minutes was his goal. Andy and I met him and the heat was picking up faster than my legs were. We hit the goal, that was exciting. 
That should have been my last long run. 
Andy wanted company running the following day back at Holly rec for some loops he is training. 
HIS GOAL: 4 loops= 16.5 miles. 
I knew it was going to be a challenge due to the heat, but you run them slow and smart. 
YOU have to PREPARE for the sweat fest. We set out chairs and made it a aid station with towels, clothing, a cooler, a bag of food, salt tabs, and GU. I drank water and sugar free Gatorade, 16 Oz on each loop and I peed every loop....this is a good thing, it gauges if you are properly hydrated. 
I know I shouldn't have ran those miles but Andy needed company. We should never be miserable alone, you know misery likes company! 

SIDE NOTE: 
Last weekend, I was a HOT MESS of emotion. Sorry for the emotional post. This weekend was a another emotional weekend but I managed it better, hence why my miles were up! 
But I want to make it very clear. No matter how sad, how upset I get, God is GOOD all the time. 
No matter how dark the days, how broken I may feel, I know that life is GOOD. I have no ill feelings, no bitterness, no unforgiveness in my heart. I am joyful in my sorrow, grateful for Gods plan for my life. I am loved and I love. I love my family, I love my mother and father. They had a terrible disease. They loved me and my siblings. My parents were beautiful people, kind, loving, funny, generous, adventurous, addiction just interrupts that. My mom and  dad were beautiful on the inside and out. 

ANITA~