50 Days - Below Zero What The Heck??

Saturday, February 29th - 51 Days To Marathon Monday

Temp at Start of Run: -4 degrees

Distance: 14 miles

Amount Raised: $5,255

Today was ridiculously cold. -4 degrees as I was getting ready to head out. All I could think of when I was starting out was that it was raw. Totally raw, so raw it hurts everywhere and you can feel the cold in places you didn't know existed. Contrary to popular belief, your lungs won't actually freeze in this type of weather, although it feels like they could. Yesterday (Friday) was warm enough so there was some snow melt, but today it's so frozen that all the melt has turned into an ice rink which made the first part of the run interesting. Ran 5 miles up heartbreak hill and met the Dana-Farber team at Boston College. It makes all the difference to run with a group. That first 5 miles was really tough, but once I was running with the team it felt like the miles flew by and before I knew it I had run 14 miles. The inspiring volunteers make all the difference too- they've all lost loved ones and they want to do something good for the world. They've lost kids, moms, dads, friends. And yet here they are helping out, with smiles on their faces, in honor and memory of those who were taken by this horrible disease. Running in -4 weather is hard, it's really hard. But it is seriously nothing compared to what cancer does. Cancer sucks. So I run on.

Link to Donate HERE - Thank You!

51 Days - Christina

Friday, February 27th - 51 Days to Marathon Monday

Temp: 20 Degrees

Distance - Rest Day before Long Run

Today was a rest day for marathon training, but a big day for a special girl. Today is my patient partner Christina's 9th birthday. A year ago when her cancer came back, her doctors gave her a 5% chance of making it to today. 5%. Not 10% or 15%, but 5%. Her body was so riddled with cancer she could hardly stand up or breathe. We saw Christina today at her house, and it's hard for me to believe this happy go lucky, energetic, sweet little girl almost died last year. She was so very happy for her birthday, all smiles and pure glee. Her aunt and uncle came to see her from Columbia where her parents are from, and there were neighbors and friends at the house who had stopped by to see her. She couldn't have been more happy and excited for her birthday. She's cancer free for now, and she's happy as could be. I'm hoping and praying so hard every day for her, so that she can move on forever and be free. Happy birthday Christina!!

Link to Donate HERE - Thank You!!

52 Days - ARC Trainer

Thursday, February 26th: T-Minus 52 Days to Marathon Monday

Temp at Start: 20 degrees

Distance: 3 miles treadmill, 2 miles ARC trainer, 10 mins core workout (inside, too much black ice)

Indoor training today. It wasn't too cold to run outside, but there was black ice everywhere since it was warmer yesterday and all the snow melt froze. In case you've never heard of it, Coach Jack recommends the Cybex ARC trainer over any elliptical machine. It replicates running more than ellipticals and gives you a better workout, and switching between the treadmill and ARC makes running longer distances inside more tolerable, sort of.

Not to much else to report today - although check out this video, the trailer for the new film about the Boston marathon called Boston.

Link to Donate HERE - Thank you!!

53 Days - Charles River Path

Wednesday, February 25th - 53 Days to Marathon Monday

Temp at Start: 29 degrees

Distance: 6 miles - outdoors, yay!! 

Fundraising: $5,055 Link for Fundraising HERE - Thank You!!

Today I got to run outside, along the Charles River path, for the first time in 5 weeks. I had to dodge the "Danger, Ice and Snow Falling" signs lined up on the streets on the way to the path, but I made it. I love how you have to take your life in your hands just walking outside when the snow and icicles start to melt. The Charles River path is one of my favorite runs (and it's flat!! flat!!! yahoo!!), along the river by the Back Bay, over the Mass Ave bridge to MIT, by the MIT boat house. It's one of the best views of the city. It's just been covered in a mess of snow and ice since mid-January. It's still snowy and the river is frozen solid and covered in snow, but the city has at least plowed just enough of a path for all of us crazy runners. There's only marathon trainers out there right now. It's funny passing other runners, we give each other knowing glances and nods that say "yep, you're crazy like I am training for this thing in April." As I was running I took some pics of the city with a few different filters. I hate cold, but it does look pretty. All that white in the front is a river, a totally frozen, snow covered river. When is it ever going to melt? May??

View of the Back Bay from the MIT side, the giant white field looking thing is the frozen Charles River

Mass Ave bridge from MIT side

The path - not quite clear but runnable

The city with a night filter, I think the snow just looks cool like this

Another "pretty" view, still cold, but pretty

Me with my DF shirt- don't want anyone to think I'd run in this crap without a reason

Fiedler Footbridge mirror, more snow, more snow more snow

See the Caution signs? Yeah that's cause life threatening icicles are falling everywhere right now

54 Days - Coach Jack

Tuesday, February 24th - 54 Days to Marathon Monday

Temp: 3 degrees

Distance - 5 miles (indoors, again, 3 miles on treadmill, 2 miles on the ARC trainer)

Ok now the winter burnout is starting to really kick in. Running 3 miles on the treadmill and 2 on the ARC trainer is seriously more painful than running 15 miles outdoors. It's just way too cold to run outside right now, especially for someone like me who's hands freeze up in temps under 60 degrees. The forecast isn't much better - Saturday's low for the morning when we have to do the long run outdoors is 0 degrees. Come on!! Shoot me. Blah. The weather people are happily saying that all the snow should be gone by about April 3rd. Perfect, just in time for all the long runs to be over and to start tapering for the race. I'm hoping that I'll feel extra special awesome at the finish line once this is all over after training through this but as of right now, that finish line seems way, way far away. On another note, we have the best coach ever for the Dana-Farber team. Coach Jack, Jack Fultz, won the 1976 Boston Marathon. He's an awesome coach, a really nice person, very inspiring, and generously donates so much time and money for Dana-Farber. He's had every injury and run in every single type of weather possible so he knows how to handle it all. His motto is "There's no bad weather, just bad gear." The year he won the marathon, 1976 "The Run for the Hoses" as it's referred to - it was 100 degrees on Marathon Monday, it also just so happens it was April 20th that year like it is this year. 100 degrees. Holy crap. April is that type of month, where you could have a freakishly warm/hot day out of nowhere. I can't even imagine that after training in the snow and freezing cold like this. Learn more about Jack HERE. 

Coach Jack running the 1976 Boston Marathon in 100 degree weather. Monday, April 20th, 1976

Link to Donate HERE: Thank You!!

55 Days - Back to Work

Monday, February 23rd - 55 Days to Marathon Monday

Temp - 20 degrees

Distance - Cross training Day - 30 minutes on the ARC trainer, 30 minutes of weights and abs

Today was my first day back to my actual office in 4 weeks. Last week was a vacation week but prior to that I couldn't actually get to my office because of all of the storms and school snow days. It was actually nice to be in today and get back to some semblance of "normal" after all that blizzard craziness. The city seems to have somehow magically moved most of the giant dirty snow piles and dumped them all in the ocean which I'm sure is great for the environment.
Today I did cross training at my faithful gym which I'm somewhat happy to see again, good old Boston Sports Club, about a quarter of a mile from the marathon finish line. By the time I pass this door on Marathon Monday I'll probably be nearly passed out.

Link to Donate HERE: Thank You!!

56 Days - Heartbreak Hill

Sunday, February 22nd - 56 Days to Go

Temp at Start of Run: 24 degrees

Distance: 12 Miles

This is what the path looks like:

Today is t-minus 56 Days and Counting to marathon Monday. 12 mile run today up heartbreak hill, around Boston College twice, and back down the hills. I'm feeling a little bit of winter running burnout right now. I'm tired of running in snow, tired of layering up for frigid temps, and definitely tired of running the hills over and over again because this is literally the ONLY safe route in the entire Boston metro area these days. Agh. Must keep motivated. This is to raise money to fight cancer, at least I get to chose this challenge whereas anyone diagnosed with cancer does not get to chose, they just have to fight.

Link to Donate HERE, Thank You!!

57 Days - Post Vacation Blues

Saturday, February 21st - 57 Days to Marathon Monday

Temp: A balmy 10 degrees

Distance: Nothing, recovering from West Coast time zone

57  Days to Marathon Monday - No run today. Back to the cold and gloom after a week in sunny LA. I sat around and wallowed in my own winter sadness all day and tried to re-adjust to the Boston time zone. Boo, poor me. Tomorrow I'll try to do 15 miles but today, no way.

Click HERE to Donate - Thank You!!

2 Months to Go - T-Minus 58 Days

Friday, February 20th - 58 Days to Marathon Monday

Temp: 70 degrees (Not in Boston silly, in LA!!)

Distance - well, nothing today because we're about to head back home, Boo, but yesterday 9 miles.

Today is Friday, February 20th, exactly 2 months/58 days from Marathon Monday. I'm feeling way behind on training and a little off focus after a week's vacation. With all the snow this winter several of the weekend Dana-Farber group runs have been cancelled and I've been out of town or busy for the others-I've only made it to 4 group runs. Somehow I'll have to catch up, quickly, and I can't miss any more runs!! Yesterday I got to run in the most beautiful, perfect setting ever - 9 miles up the winding Hollywood Hills and around the Lake Hollywood Reservoir. It was perfect for running - 65 degrees and partly sunny. Tomorrow it's back to the cold and snow but yesterday was running paradise.

Click HERE to Donate - Thank You!!