First Marathon - Check, Reach fund raising minimum for LLS - check

Short Story:

Yes, I have done it. I reached the 26.2 mile mark with enough energy to jump over the finish line. Don't believe me? Look for yourself - The video is posted here. It took me a little longer than I expected but I did it without hitting a wall and without any injury. To me that was my definition of a successful run. You can view the photos here, which will be printed in Gold, why else would they charge so much for these prints? :)

As of July 5th, together we collected $4361 (112% of my goal) for Leukemia and Lymphoma Society, with a couple of more matching donations still to go. THANK YOU ALL SO MUCH. I wouldn't have done it without your support. The donation is still open, if you or anyone you know would like to donate to LLS, please go ahead and donate here.

Long Story:

Training Blues

Three and a half to four months of 4-5 days/week workout schedule could have been torpedoed by lower back pain and flu, but I survived. My main goal for the training was to get to the start line without any major injury. When my left shin was hurting, I went to the physiotherapist at SMI and since then I had this goal in mind. If I could get to the start line without any injuries, I will be able to finish. With the painful deep tissue working its charm, I was almost injury free. With three weeks to go, all I had to do was not get hurt. So, on Monday in the gym, I over did my workout and messed up my back. I couldn't do the longest 20 mile run that week as I had to recover. The 13th weekend, when all my team mates were putting in the 20 miler in Coyote hills in Fremont, I was at my brother-in-law's college graduation at Santa Barbara. So, the only time I had was Tuesday to put in the longest run. Then, there was yet another intervention. I fell sick on Monday. On Tuesday however, I had to put in a 12 miler. With energy going down by the minute, it was the hardest run ever. Since then, I had two weeks to completely recover for the big day. I didn't go to work all week as I was miserable and by Sunday, I was feeling a lot better. With just one week, I played it safe and hoped for the best.

Race Start

By the time we reached Seattle on Friday, I had recovered but the energy level still didn't feel at 100%. So, as we woke up on Saturday morning at 3:30 to leave the hotel at 4:30, I decided, I would run slowly to make sure I have enough energy to finish. We reached at the start line at 5 and the start was at 7, so we just waited. I just sat and spent as little energy as possible while staying hydrated. When the race started at 7, we were still in the line for the porter-potties. Since the start was a wave start, our corral was not going to start before 7:25 so we got to the start line by 7:10. We still had to wait for 15-20 mins before we actually started at 7:29.

By this time, the sun had been out for about 2 hours and there was not a single cloud in the sky. The whole reason of running in Seattle was lost. Now, we had to run expecting it to be hot. So, I put on my shades and cap and started to run. Due to the adrenaline, I knew I would have to make extra effort to run slowly. I did just that and started very slowly, and at the first mile marker, saw the time, it was a little over 10 mins. That was the effect of adrenaline, instead of a 12 min / mile pace, I did 10 min. I stopped, stretched (as I always do after about half a mile to a mile) and then started again. The second mile I ran at 13+ min / mile. Nice. Now I was doing the right thing. I enjoyed the first few miles going through the neighbourhoods of Tukwila. There were bands, cheer leader squads and just people to cheer us up.

4 to 9 miles

After about 4 miles, we reached lake Washington. It was a beautiful day to run and the path right next to the lake was great. If I only had to run a half marathon, it would have been awesome, but knowing the distance I had to cover and the bright sun, I took it easy, enjoying the great houses on the way and the scenery around the lake. We even saw a bald eagle on the tree next to the lake.

9 to 12 miles

At about 9 mile marker, the half marathoners went towards the finish line, and we marathoners ran on the bridge for about 1.5 miles and back. It was great to run on the bridge on the water with a view of ice covered Mt. Reinier in the back. The people on the other side of the bridge were also honking to cheer us up on the way.

12 to 15 miles

At around 12 mile mark, we joined the half marathoners again and when we crossed the 13 mile marker, the half marathoners thought it was a joke, not realizing that it was OUR distance and not theirs. Anyhow, around our 14 mile marker and their close to 13, there was a guy saying, "All the half marathoners on the left, and all the crazy people on the right". He was right, we were crazy. It did feel ridiculous that we still had to run 12 more miles. Oh well, I kept up my slow, now 13+ min/mile average, speed and kept on going. Another team mate had suggested that her milestones were 15 and 20 miles when she ran the San Diego marathon. "If you can reach 15 mile marker without any major problems" she said, "you will finish". So, I reached the 15 mile marker and celebrated a little as everything was in working order. Phew.

16 to 24 miles

By the 16th mile we were running on the double decker freeway where we were going out on the bottom deck and the people on the top were doing their 23rd or 24th mile. I knew that the turn around was after the 18th mile, so there was nothing else to do but keep on going forward. By this time, I was already stopping every time I felt like, which about about once every mile at least or about every 7 mins or so. The path was going through some un-interesting neighborhoods, there was a bridge which was very high up on the water and interesting to run on, then there was the space needle on the side, but I don't think people were even noticing by then.

After I crossed the 18 mile marker, I knew now all I had to do was make it back. I was entering unchartered territory as I had never run more than 18 miles in my life. I wasn't feeling completely devoid of energy like I was when I was sick and I had to run 12 miles, so I knew energy was not going to be a problem, so all I had to worry about now was hydrating well so that I do not cramp up or hit a wall. I kept drinking cytomax and water on every water stop which were plenty. There were about 18 water stations throughout the course, so I just ran with 2 small bottles on my fuel belt instead of 4. I kept on stopping at every mile to stretch properly. Around 20th mile, my legs were beginning to feel tired and even my hip area felt tight. So I kept on stopping every 5 minutes and stretching.

At this point, I was tired but I had the words of a good friend, Pradnya, in my mind. She said its "relentless forward motion", I felt its the "power of one", one goal in mind, to cross the finish line. I kept on moving forward thinking about the cancer patients who have to go through much worse pain. The random people who had come to just cheer the Team In Training people up also helped. By this time the people running around me were also the same people. We would cross each other and make small talk. Also, the knowledge that my friend Sai, who had started about 10 mins after me, was also behind me helped keep my spirits up. After every turnaround I would look for him to high-five. Also, another way that I had organized the course was 6x4 + 2.2, so 24 miler was my big milestone. If I could reach 24 mile marker, I could cross the finish line walking the rest of the way. So every 6 miles, I would celebrate by walking, stretching and re-fueling. At around 22nd mile, I took my last Gu-chomps break and streched as I felt my left calf could get a cramp. But keeping myself hydrated, I kept the relentless forward motion.

The difficult miles - 24-26

The cruelty of the last few miles was apparent when we reached the 23rd mile, we could see the 26 mile marker but for that we had to go out 1.5 mile and come back. Ah, the last turn around was after 24th mile and it felt great to know that all I had to do was just go back 2 miles and get done with this massive project of keeping myself sane, hydrated and motivated to achieve that singular goal. At this point, on the 25th mile, there was a small ramp up to the freeway to get to the 25th mile marker. It felt like a big hill. Everybody must have cursed the course designer for keeping that "hill" on the 25th mile.

The finish line

The end was in sight, I kept on doing the 5-2 split and ran towards the finish line. When I saw the 26 mile marker, I just kept on running not worrying about the splits. I had saved up my energy for this. After you cross the 26 mile, the last .2 miles feels so great. You feel like a celebrity. People lined up on both sides cheering for you to finish. The photographers clicking away to sell the precious pictures for gazillion dollars. I had enough energy to jump over the finish line.

Post Race

The enormity of the task was such that after achieving it, I did feel a few tears in my eyes for couple of seconds. After overcoming shin splints, back problem, flu and marathon distance, I had done it. The first in my family and my in-law's family, to cross 26.2 miles (42 kms) without any major problems. Raising around $4K for a worthy cause. I was on the top of the world.

"Without any major problems" was important. Later that evening, we heard numerous stories of other people. One lady collapsed just before the 26th mile. She had to be taken away on a stretcher. One guy was hallucinating that he was in a bazaar, and he kept on asking for price for various things. Another guy removed his shoes at the 22nd mile to see that all around his feet were big blisters. When he got the courage to put his shoes back on and started walking, he realized that his muscles were cramping and he could not walk. And numerous people who had to walk last 3-4 miles because their muscles were cramping.

Considering all this, I feel I did run a good first run. I am not proud of the timing (about 6 hours 10 mins) but I am proud of running the race and finishing without any injuries. I am also proud that with all your support, we were able to raise more than $4K towards Leukemia and Lymphoma Society.

Before I go, I would like to say that running with Team In Training was great. They have the whole program set with good coaches to guide you cross the finish line.

I will post one more entry on this blog to share all that I have learned about recovering from long and brutal runs.

After the run, I took a nice ice bath and ate half of large butter paneer Can-am pizza (the best Indian pizza ever) which my friends (Mihir and Munjal) brought to our hotel room. Attended the victory party that night with other TnT people, exchanged stories, slept for about 10 hours and took the flight back to the bay area feeling satisfied of having becoming a marathoner.

Thank you SOOOOO MUCH for supporting me.

Go Team!!!

Obstacles +1

I need to invoke Lord Ganesh now to remove my obstacles. As if shin and back problems were not enough, now I get slammed with cough, cold, sneezing, body ache and fever. It started on Tuesday so I thought if I have to get in a run, I have to get one in before the symptoms get worse. So I consulted with my coach and he said, drink lots of fluids and put in a 12 miler. It should take 2 hours right? Right.... I felt so weak as the miles went by that after 7-8 miles, I just started walking more and running less. It was one of the hardest run I have ever done, on the scale of Hellyer run for amount of effort I had to put in. Anywho, it took more 2 hours 40+ mins to finish 12 miles. In a way glad that I was able to exercise my lungs and my will power but felt bad that I am not enjoying this last long run before the actual event. Instead of feeling good about the hard work I have put in, now I have to worry about recovering by next week to the point that I feel full of energy on the morning of June 27.

Shri Ganyeshay Namah...

One more torpedo

I was supposed to run 20 miles today, but I ain't running. I did it again. I messed up my back a little this Monday. I was supposed to do core in the gym, so I went and did some spinning, weight lifting and core. After the physiotherapist's appt, my shins were much better and I was feeling good so I kept on going for over an hour. Next day, my back was hurting as if I had pinched some nerve or had a slip disc. This has happened before to me a few years ago. I was on the bed for a week. Luckily this time, its not that bad. I can walk around but with a strange gait. If I walk for half an hour or so, I get that pain again. Heat and lying down helps. Current plan: Get better as soon as possible to start running.

Sigh.

18 is less than 16

I cannot believe it. It took me 10 mins less to run the 18 miler last Saturday than running the 16 miles at Hellyer. Yeah, that's the power of heat. It just saps the energy out of you. After the brutal 16 mile run at Hellyer, my main focus was to recover and be mentally ready for the heat as the 18 miler was going to be at the oracle trail. If you haven't been on it, it is very close to our apartment and goes right next to the bay. It has no shade, so a clear day would have been quite bad. However, we were lucky.

When we started from Oracle at 7:35ish, it was completely overcast and the temperature was comfortable with a very little breeze. It was ideal for running. I, and of course every one else, was so happy to have such a great weather. Besides, it was along the path which I have been on so many times. I had done parts of this whole trail at different times, so I knew the whole trail. That gave me confidence and I knew what to expect. With lots of people already on the way to San Diego for their marathon last Sunday, there were very few runners... but who cared. It was not hot so we kept on running. When I reached the Coyote Point, and saw the turn around mark, I was surprised that I had already done 9 miles, half way through, in about 1.5 hours. So, on my way back, I knew all I had to do was keep up the rhythm and I would finish strong. Also, since I was the last one running, I kept trying to catch up with the others in my wave. This target keeps you focused too as far as you are not in pain.

On my way back, I was running behind Caroline and she was doing 7-1 split. I finally caught up with her at the first (hence last) water stop after crossing two others in my wave. Ian, was doing 8 mins / mile so we couldn't even see him, so I told her, at least we can get silver and bronze. Right after that, she took off. I took little more time to stretch and fill up before the last 3.5 miles and started running. I couldn't catch up with her, but because I had a target in mind, it helped me run faster. At the end, Caroline also said that because I was trying to beat her, she kept running too. So, we both motivated each other and finished strongly. Of course, you can do this as far as there is no major pain bothering you.

The legs hurt as much as they always do but because the heat was less and mild sun came out only towards the end, I was not as dehydrated as I used to be in my previous runs. That means no headache that day. Yay!! So, after the ice bath, and usual rest, I felt much better. With little more practice and mental preparation, it looks like I just might be able to cross the finish line.

I just have to do all I can to recover from this and the next big run, the last big run which I will have to do on my own. If you are free on next Thursday morning, 11th June, and if you want to, you can help me with my run. Samir has graciously agreed to help. We are going to try and run at Sawyer camp trail as early as possible.

TNT Woodside Run 4-18-09

TNT Woodside Run 4-18-09
Originally uploaded by Shoutingboy

This is where the shin damage started. The 15 mile woodside run. I am stretching not realizing the shins are going to hurt even after a month.

Training in top gear

I took some time off from the mad 5 days a week workout schedule to recover from the shin injury that was bothering me. At last week's track workout, coach had said that its a good news that the bone and the muscles of right shin were not hurting when I touched them. It only hurt when I put weight on my right leg. So, after some massaging, icing, ibuprofen and prayer, I was ready (almost) to run the 16 miler at Hellyer park in South San Jose.

The incredible part about the run was an act of kindness by a stranger. I was running the first 5 mile on the trail prepared for the hot day. At 9 AM it was getting warm but the heat wasn't that bad. I crossed a lady on the trail and just asked her how she was doing. We started to chat a little and she asked me how close was I to my goal. She had raised funds and run an AIDS marathon so she knew. I told her I was still around 63% with about 3 weeks to the fund raising deadline. She asked me for my email address and said that she would donate. By the time I finished and got to my car, she had already sent me an email asking me for the donation website. She donated later that day to LLS through my event. I am sure she could have donated to LLS by other means, but donating through a stranger's event like this just made my day.

The trail was pretty and shaded at some places but very boring at other places. The first 9 miles were great. After the second water station, it was 1.5 miles out and back. Towards the turn around point, someone's dog was just hanging out on the trail. The dog approached me and started sniffing. It started to get a little scary but then the dog moved on. Weirrd...

Back at the second water station (now at 12 miles) people were taking a much needed break from the heat. Getting their hats and shirts wet for the heat. I kept myself hydrated throughout the run but still the last 4 miles were pretty tough. The heat was unrelenting at around 90+ degrees. I didn't feel like running after taking a break in the shade. So I developed a system of running around 5-10 mins and then taking a 2 min break. This got me closer and closer and I finished at 12:30 PM.

If it were 10 degrees cooler, I would have certainly finished it stronger than the last run, but you have good days and bad. These difficult days with rain, heat and cold prepare you, I guess, for anything on the day of the run. Hopefully Seattle will be just perfect.

I must say, the ice baths are painful, but boy they work. They help recover much faster.

14 miles in the rain equals 18 ?

The mile markings and the instructions could have made it 18, but I did better this time, and only did 14.5 instead. Oh these miscommunications...

From the start today morning, I wasn't feeling great and when I got to the start line, it wasn't raining and the temperature was comfortable so I just started running without the jacket. I started running with the 18 milers, so went around the lake merced in San Francisco, and ran on Sunset blvd all the way to the Golden Gate park. Usually, first 6-8 miles are no big deal, but today, they were so hard. For some reason, I just wasn't up to running at my usual pace. So, I just kept drinking water, kept stopping when I felt like. The rain was not coming down hard but it was a constant drizzle. It was much better than the hot woodside sun. On a regular day, I would have enjoyed this part but today was different. After about 6 miles, the first water stop at the entrance of Golden Gate Park was a much welcome relief.

We were told that after the second water stop at traverse and JFK, 14 milers were supposed to go a little bit out and back, and the 18 milers were supposed to run in the pan handle. I kept on running and asked some runners who were coming back, and they said, ya, the "turnaround" was about half a mile. After about 1 mile, still no sign of turn around. Then I see a group of our runners and someone shouting if you think you are running 10 then you are running 14, and if you think you are running 14 then you are running 18. Great. This is not what I was expecting. I felt pretty angry and demoralized, but now that I was close to the turnaround, I had to see it and then plan to cut back the distance.

Just then a coach/mentor came by running with the group of fast runners. He said, he would run back and after reaching the second water stop, we can call the coach and ask how much I have already run. If I have run enough, someone will come and pick me up. Phew. What a relief!! I pretty much ran all the way back, and finished strong in 2 hrs 55 mins. There were other mentors who gave us a ride back and on the way we picked up other 3 runners who had run much more than they were supposed to. If the markings were correct, I would have loved to run down JFK and ran next to the ocean beach. Well, that would have to wait for some other day.

I think the distances are getting to a point where I can't just show up and start running. I need to get a little more serious and actually make an effort to recover completely. If you have suggestions, please do send them along. Its 12 miles more, which right now feels almost impossible.

Fund raising wise also, I am much far from the target. Almost a month remaining and still at 37%. Time to change gears..