R U Serious?

My total mileage for this year so far is 398 miles.  Before my run on Monday evening I was only 6 miles away from the 400 mile mark and set out to run a routine 10K distance to break the milestone.  At mile 3 my left knee started feeling weird.  This is not the knee that has given me trouble in the past, nor did it feel like the IT band syndrome problem that my other knee has had previously.  There was some discomfort and tightness but nothing too bad...it just felt weird so I kept going at the same pace.  By mile 4 it was nagging and glitchy.  I was having to change my running form because it felt like something was catching under my knee cap.  I stopped to walk it out and planned to start running again after a one minute walk.  When I tried to start running again it was clear that something was very wrong.  Sharp pain and buckling of my knee happened whenever I tried to run.  I stretched some but still my knee was not having it.  CRAP!  I called Steve to come pick me up since I was across town.  I was 2 miles short of making it 400 miles this year injury-free : (

So, I'm having an 'R U Serious?' moment right now.  I just can't believe this happened.  I haven't had even a hint of pain in that knee.  I was running one of my usual routes and this happened after only 3 miles... a distance that is considered a short run for me now.  It really feels like something is out of place, like tissue, or cartilage, or something is wedged up and under my knee cap and is getting pinched in there.  It hurts at 2 specific angles...hyperextended and slightly bent.  Otherwise it is pain free.  Unfortunately to run I have to bend through that slightly bent spot and each time that sends shooting pains and causes my knee to go weak.  I'm not going to run until this gets straightened out but I'm freaking out at how long that may be.  I recently set up my marathon training schedule to start preparing for Chicago and I was 2 weeks into that.  I hadn't really increased my mileage from what I was already running so I don't think this is an over use or an increase in miles too quickly issue.  Plus I had just had 2 days off of running since I spent the weekend at my daughter's softball tournament so my legs were fresh and ready to run.  If it's not better by the end of the week I'm going to the Dr. to have it looked at.

In other news, prior to this recent setback, I have been having some great runs.  I've been increasing my speed little by little, especially on the longer runs.  Here is a pace progression for the year so far : )

Also, and I'm ultra excited about this, my girls have taken up an interest in running!  I think the bug bit them when they went to watch my last 10K race.  We got them new running shoes and they have been running on the road in front of our house to start training.  I had the oldest wear my garmin to map the distance and we calculated that up and down our street 2.5 times = 1 mile.  They are gearing up to do the fun run associated with the 5K event I'm running on July 7th.  There are 2 fun run distances to choose from... a 0.5K (0.3 miles) or a 1K (0.6 miles).  My youngest will likely do the 0.5K, but my other 2 will want to run the 1K race.  Everyone gets a medal and it will be a fun experience for them.  My oldest daughter, after seeing the amount of kids who ran in the Bridge the Gap race last month, decided she wants to run a 5K with me in the fall.  I told her to keep working at running longer distances this summer and she will be able to do the 5K being held in our hometown in mid-September.  She has been running several times a week, and with her drive to do something I'm sure she will be at the starting line with me for that race.  And since my middle daughter likes to keep up with her big sister I wouldn't be surprised if she ends up running it too.  It makes my heart happy to see my girls excited about this hobby of mine and wanting to run and get better themselves.

Bridge the Gap 10K 2012.

This was my 2nd year running the Bridge the Gap race and it is one of my local favorites.   It's super cool to be able to run over the mighty Mississippi River on the bridges, but also the charity that this race supports is wonderful.  Being a pharmacist the MedAssist program holds a special place with me.  It is a much needed program supported by Quincy Catholic Charities and Bridge the Gap to Health that helps those who cannot otherwise afford medications obtain their much needed prescriptions...a very worthy cause.  This year was a record breaking race participant year so this benefited MedAssist greatly.

Friday after work I went to the race expo to pick up my packet and t-shirt.  I was a little disappointed to find out that they weren't offering the text notifications this year.  It was so nice last year to get a text to my phone moments after crossing the finish line with my official chip time.  Unfortunately, this year the event was using a whole new timing company and text info wasn't an option.  The expo was pretty small so I didn't spend much time there.  I had arranged to meet Steve and the girls for dinner and we of course chose a spot where I could carb load...one of the greatest perks of running in my book!

After dinner we went home and I started to get everything ready for race day.  I also had to prepare everything for a full day of tournament softball games that we were heading to as soon as the race was over, it was going to be a busy day ahead.  The timing chip wasn't like any that I have used before.  It was a hard plastic square that you had to secure to your shoe with twisty ties.  Also the instructions were to have your chip removed by a worker once you crossed the finish line because failure to return your chip would result in a $20 charge.  This was crazy strange...I have never had to give a timing chip back before???

I went to bed at 10pm and was able to fall asleep pretty well.  Of course I beat my alarm up the next morning and was wide awake at 4am.  I got dressed, ate some oatmeal, and eventually woke everyone else up so we could leave for the race by 6:30am.

The race started at 8am and we were parked and at the race start in plenty of time.  I was glad that Steve and the girls were there with me, they have only come to watch me at the 2 races I ran in our hometown previously.  The girls were really excited about it...they were stretching with me, snacking on the free granola bars being handed out before the race, and taking in the music and atmosphere.  They were also a great little cheering section and motivation for me.

The weather for the race couldn't have been better for running.  It was overcast and cooler in the mid 60's.  This is my optimal weather scenario...warm enough to wear shorts and a tech tee, but cool enough conditions for easier running effort.  There were 3 race distances to run for this race, a 5K, 10K, or Half-Marathon, and everyone lined up together at the start by pace.  I lined up toward the back of the 8 min/mile section.  After the National Anthem the gun went off promptly at 8am and it only took a few seconds for me to cross over the start line.

Right after the start we had a few 90 degree turns and a steep climb up Hampshire Hill.  It was very crowded at this point and was hard to get into a comfortable pace.  You really just had to conform with what the amoeba of runners were doing and try not to trip.

Once we got onto the the first bridge, Memorial Bridge, I was able to stride out better and found a good rhythm to settle into.  I was still dodging runners but at least it was easier to find holes to get around them at this point.   I had my iPhone on my arm and my familiar running mix of songs was pulsing through my headphones.  Especially during races I have to have music to take my mind off the crowd around me.  The first bridge went by pretty quickly and on the other side marked 1 mile down already.  My pace was faster than I had wanted to go out with (adrenalin), but I was feeling good and decided not to try and change my tempo since it felt comfortable.  When I was coming back across the next bridge, Bayview Bridge, I looked down into Clat Adams Park where the race had started from and spotted Steve and the girls right away.  They were dressed in their orange softball team shirts so it was easy to pick out the blob of orange.  I started waving and surprising enough they saw me too.  We waved back and forth until I cleared the bridge which was a nice boost mid race.  It was a nice downhill slope to come back down to shore level and then we split off from the 5Kers down 2nd Street.    This opened up the road a lot.

Next we wove through Riverview Park.  This was mostly uphill and for a pretty good stretch.  I tried to keep the same effort instead of the same pace because I didn't want to burn out at the end.  I was starting to feel the wears of the faster pace that I was maintaining.  See that elevation change from mile 2.5 to 3...that was Riverview Park.

After coming out of the park us 10Kers split from the half-marathon group and went out across yet another bridge that straddled the Mississippi.  This was just a one-lane bridge and it took us out onto Quinsippi Island.  We wound around the island and eventually reached the turn-around spot where we looped back onto the same route.  It was cool to pass the runners going the opposite direction and give eachother encouragement.

Once we got back over the river (that made 4 total trips over the Mississippi for this race) we were on the final stretch up Bonansinga Drive to the finish.  Someone standing on the roadside had a sign that read "You have trained longer for this than Kim Kardashian's marriage!".  That made me laugh.  It was a nice flat elevation for the homestretch in.

Steve and the girls started cheering for me as soon as they saw me coming into the the finish area and that gave me some extra motivation.  I finished strong, got medaled by Jackie Joyner Kersey (the race celebrity), and had my timing chip removed :/  I grabbed a water and a banana and found my family.  They all hugged me and didn't even care that I was sweaty gross.

Since there were no text alerts I had to wait in line to have my official results printed out.  I knew my Garmin had said that I ran faster than I thought I was capable of for a 10K distance, but it wasn't until I got the printout that I believed it.  My time was 49:13 and I never even imagined that I would be able to break a sub-50 min 10K, but I did!  An average of 7:57 min/mile, and that is fast for me.

My time put me at first in my age group and 5th overall for the women.  We waited around for the award announcements and listened to a band they had playing on stage.  When they called my name for my plague my little cheering section screamed and clapped for me : )

Then it was a mad rush to get to the softball tournament.  We made it just in time for the team to take the field!