It Keeps You Runnin'

Dash-n-Splash

As you know, the summer can get pretty oppressive here in New York City.

What is a runner to do?

Participate in a Dash-n-Splash!

It's only 7:30am and it's HOT already...

The runners register and queue up for the race.

(Freddie is in this picture somewhere around the "8"...)

These Central Park races are so exciting!  There are so many people both running and watching.  

I'm always really surprised when I actually catch Freddie running across the finish line!

Aw, he has such a cute face!  He's so proud.

(...and in case you haven't seen Freddie in awhile and are wondering -- no, he's not going bald.  He still has a full head of beautiful reddish-blond curls.  However, he tends to wear his hair very short for his military service and general comfort during the hot summer months!)

After the race, there were volunteers at the ready with fire hoses.  They were spraying anything and everything.  It felt GREAT!

...Well, it felt great unless you walked right in front of the high pressure hoses -- then it hurt!

He had a great DASH.  Now it's time to SPLASH.

Lasker Pool was opened up to just the runners and their families after the race for a few hours.

A well-deserved dip after a very hot morning run!!

New Shoes!!

Freddie is quickly becoming the Imelda Marcos of marathon running.

His shoe of choice?  Asics.

He rotates between these two pairs of shoes.  Why does he need two pairs?  Well, it's good to mix it up, depending on the length of the run and type of training (interval sprints vs a steady jog, for example).  It seems to me, as an observer, that the red ones have a stronger support for pronation.  The blue ones seem to be a bit more flexible.  I guess you have to rely more on your own ankle strength and placement in those!  Freddie changes it up to keep his feet from getting too used to one or the other.  

As a dancer, I certainly understand that!  I have one pair of dance heels that are very supple for pointing my feet if I am doing lot of showgirl walking or something light and lyrical.  I have another pair with a T-strap and braced heel for my aggressive styles of dance - I did several years of can-can dancing in those and never had an injury. (those shoes are stiff and I can't point well in them, however!) 

Running shoes can be pretty expensive, but I can't really complain...all Freddie has to do is open the bottom drawer of my bureau and regard the many styles of dance shoes that I own!  I'm definitely the pot calling the kettle black!

10k Kidney Run

Last Saturday, Freddie ran a 10k.  The "cause" this time was Healthy Kidneys. 

 

Freddie usually gets a free shirt with each race.  I like to model them during the race.  This picture was taken about 5 minutes before the start time.  Freddie was standing inside the corral and had just handed me his warm up pants.  I slung them over my shoulders.  I look very official, no?  I always wear my leopard print hat so Freddie can spot (ha! get it? SPOT!?) me standing near the finish line.  I carry my cell so I know when to start looking for him in earnest.  With so many runners passing in front of you, your eyes cn get tired really fast!  He usually sends a quick text  when he is a mile away from the end.  Then I know he's about 8 - 10 minutes away.





I almost missed him this time!  He's laughing at me.

6.2 miles in 57 minutes.  Another fantastic improvement!

Half Marathon

On May 3, Freddie ran a half-marathon in Brooklyn.  He did a great job! He came in six whole minutes under his goal time.  His knee was bothering him a little bit around mile 10 and he seemed rather stiff and sore the next day...but it wasn't so bad that he couldn't jump back into training (with the help of some aspirin and an ice pack!)

I would have loved to go along and cheer for him, but I had another engagement.  Half marathons are their own monster in the world of racing!  I love the excitement.  Here's some pictures from the first half marathon that Freddie did almost two years ago:

Very early in the morning, the volunteers start setting up the water stations.

This was the first half marathon in NYC. The police were out in full force because they just didn't know what to expect in the way of crowd control, both for participants and race watchers.  This is the base of Central Park -- the runners did a huge loop around the park and then went down Sixth Avenue to Broadway to Riverside Drive all the way down to Battery Park.  Freddie really enjoyed the scenic aspects of the run.  He always had something interesting to look at and the feeling of the race changed with each neighborhood.  It wasn't too hilly either, and the last mile and a half was on a very slight decline.  The runners knew that once they pushed thru mile 11, they were definitely gonna make it to the end.  You could actually see their relief as they passed the mile 12 marker...knowing that they were almost done.

Here come the runners!

Believe it or not, I found Freddie amidst THOUSANDS of runners.  It was pouring rain, but Freddie was having a great time.  This is at mile 6.

Freddie felt great at the finish line in Battery Park!

Freddie knows what it takes to run THIRTEEN miles!  :)

Run as One

On April 13, Freddie ran in the "Run for One" race for a cure for lung cancer.  This was probably one of the more crowded races he has participated in.  A lot of rookie runners were in the wrong starting corrals and it took forever to get the race started.  Below, he is listening to some tunes while he waits to begin.

Freddie's goal was to run 9 minute miles and come in under 36 minutes (it was a 4 mile race).

I am pleased to say that Freddie, once again, met his goal and came in at 35:27!  And that was with polite negotiation of crowds that don't normally show up for NYRR races but wanted to run for the cause of lung cancer.  So, we imagine that he could have come in even faster, perhaps.  But hey, he was happy with his race.  Little by little, he is increasing his mileage and decreasing his minutes, so it's all good.

I can testify (because I am his wife!) -- his legs are lookin' lean and strong. A nice side effect of long distance running.  Rowr!!

"...to be intelligent"

Today we got a letter from our "kid" in Rwanda!

With assistance from an interpreter, he writes:

Dearest Sponsor,

    Hello!  Are you doing well?  I felt overjoyed after hearing from you.  I like school and we are at the end of 1st term of school year.  In a few days, we will be enjoying holidays for 2 weeks.  During this free time, I help my family in different activities such as collecting firewood and fetching water.  I thank you so much for the stickers, postcard and letter that you sent me.  They interested me a lot.
    We are having rain but there is no snow (like where you live).  So, several persons are growing Irish potatoes and wheats to be harvested in the dry season.  As for games, I'm interested in soccer!
    I end here by wishing you wonderful times.  Stay well.

Your sponsored child,

Xavier

We also received a "report card" from World Vision -- Xavier is in 3rd grade now and doing adequately in school.  He is in the 60% percentile, but much improved this year and is cultivating a hunger to learn and excel.  This is a huge improvement from his previous years in school.  His teacher says he is good at numbers and seems to enjoy history lessons.  As a hobby, he likes to draw pictures!  (We always get a drawing from him whenever he writes us.  Last time, he drew his house.  This time, he drew a car.  It's very cute.)   

Xavier's father passed away several years ago from an undisclosed illness, but thanks to his sponsorship through World Vision, Xavier is receiving regular medical check ups as is reported as perfectly healthy.  His mother and little sister are also receiving medical insurance coverage as an umbrella benefit of his sponsorship.

The first year and a half of sponsorship was kinda rough -- we didn't hear from Xavier at all.  Perhaps he was grieving his father's death?  He didn't seem very interested in talking to us at first.  We sent colorful greeting cards and many, many sheets of stickers...but our first two pieces of returning correspondence were just drawings. (one was a little house and the other was a cow - heh.) The past year has been much better.  Since he likes to draw so much, I'll probably send him some colored pencils for his birthday in June!

Obviously, things are really looking up for him now.  At the bottom of his report card, his prayer request was that we would "ask God to help him to be more intelligent" --  which I think is an adorably profound thing for a 10 year old boy to say!  It seems like he really wants to do well in school.  I am looking forward to future correspondence as he gets older and he is able to talk about more things.

Back in the saddle

On March 15th, Freddie got right back into racing.  He had just returned from Germany and wasn't exactly confident about running for time, but thought it was best to just jump right back in.  Freddie didn't do any races in 2007, when he was working overseas, but he did have the chance to explore weight training and other disciplines, such as biking and swimming.

Does it look cold, wet and rainy?  It was!  A lot of these races occur very early in the morning.  Runners come crawling out of every nook and crannie and, suddenly, the subway is about as full at 5am as it usually is at 8:30am -- only everyone has numbers pinned to their chests!

(I am SUCH a good wife for getting up early to play cheerleader.)

At 7:30am, when all the runners were properly registered and warmed up (and it was finally light out), the race began.  I found a big rock to stand on and watch the racers pass by.  Here they come!!

Hey!  There he is!!

Lookin' good, Freddie!!

Usually, there are a few professional runners in these things.  By the time all the 10 and 11 minute milers pass my at the front of the race, I usually have just enough time to find a good spot at the end of the race and watch the first of the winners come thru.  They run under 5 minute miles!   But, they are gunning for a place in the Olympic trials.  Usually, normal people will run a mile in 8 or 9 minutes.

Fred's goal was to go easy this time and make sure he came in under 9 and a half per mile -- just to give himself a good, solid starting off point.  Here he comes!!

He made a pretty decent time -- definitely came in under his goal. 

Good job!!

 

Training Schedule

Recently, I asked Freddie to detail his training plan for me:

I started running in earnest on March 17th.  I'm breaking my training down into 4 week increments.  I run a minimum of 3 miles each time I venture out and a minimum of 15 miles per week.  On some of those runs, I'll intersperse sprinting 100 yard dashes/walking 100 yard dashes within that run.

Anyway, here's my plan: (my weeks begin on Monday and end on Saturday.)

March 17-April 12 (15 miles per week/minimum of 3 miles per run)
-Run 3 or 4 times per week with one of those days being a 6-miler

April 14-May 10 (18 miles per week/minimum of 3 miles per run)
-Run 3 or 4 times per week with one of those days being a 9-miler

May 12-June 7 (21 miles per week/minimum of 3 miles per run)
-Run 3 or 4 times per week with one of those days being a 12-miler

June 9-July 5 (24 miles per week/minimum of 3 miles per run)
-Run 3 or 4 times per week with one of those days being a 15-miler

July 7-Aug 2  (27 miles per week/minimum of 3 miles per run)
-Run 3 or 4 times per week with one of those days being an 18-miler

Aug 4-Aug 30 (30 miles per week/minumum of 3 miles per run)
-Run 3 or 4 times per week with one of those days being a 20- or 21-miler

Sept 1- Sept 20 --

I'll use this time period as a buffer time in case I fall behind in training.  By the 20th, I'd like to be running 20 or 21 miles at least once a week and at least 30 miles per week.

Sept 22 - date of the race (last three weeks before the race)
Basically stay healthy.  Keep flexible, hydrated, and injury-free. I won't increase mileage per week at this point.  As the weeks have gone by, I should have an idea of what my per mile pace will be for the marathon.  I'm going to try to run 3 to 15 mile runs at that pace throughout these last weeks.

Some Tips:

I have found that running those 100 yard sprints interspersed with walking 100 yards is helping me increase my pace.  I've also tried running for one minute, walking for one, running for one minute, walking for one minute etc and so on.

Having the right footgear is very important.  If you are going to take up long distance running, be sure and wear shoes that complement your foot shape (do you overpronate? underpronate? etc)   www.runnersworld.com has good info on shoes.

I also use a navigation device that tells me exactly how far I've run, my pace, my heartrate, etc.  It cost about $150.

Run a 3 or 5 mile race with the New York Road Runner's club (or your local city club) even if you don't officially join.  It will be good to get practice running in big crowds of people and hearing spectators cheer you on.

After your long runs, take 2 or more days off to let your muscles and joints heal.

Combine weight training with running. Possibly cross train with either bicycling and/or swimming.

Diet is also important as is getting adequate hydration and sleep!

I run with headphones and my iPod.  Makes those long runs more bearable.

Launching!

Hi there!  Erin here, writing of behalf of Freddie (stretching, above).

Freddie is running his first full marathon in October, the Chicago Marathon to be exact.  Freddie started running about two years ago with the New York Road Runners club.   He ran the inaugural NYC Half-Marathon in 2006 and continued to train overseas while he was deployed with the Navy Nurse Corps in 2007.  Now, he's back home and ready to take on a full marathon!

Freddie is running with over 20 other athletes for an organization called World Vision.  They are specifically running for the children of Nyamagabe and Mudasomwa -- two villages that have an ongoing relationship with our church (Trinity Baptist). 

We are excited to be a part of this effort -- both in further raising the public awareness of World Vision and (on a more personal level) providing more support for the children of Nyamagabe and Mudasomwa. 

Freddie and I have supported a young boy, Xavier, for the past two years.  Honestly, we barely miss the monthly amount that we send to him ($35), but it has meant the world to Xavier and his family.  With that money, he is able to go to school and also receive other perks from World Vision such as personal guidance, clothing, food and medical care.  In the past two years, we have seen him grow from a sullen, withdrawn and undirected little boy...to a bright, cheerful and motivated student that loves to draw, learn new things and help his mother with household chores.

Won't you bookmark this site and join us in the journey to the Chicago Marathon? 

I will be updating on a weekly basis with pictures, video and interviews detailing the process as Freddie and his team of fellow athletes prepare to take on the marathon.

Thank you for stopping by!