Okay so this has been a pretty shitty week all in all. And it might just end up being the end of the marathon training for me- WHICH PISSES ME OFF BEYOND BELIEF.
So here's what's going down...
A few months back, maybe January or so, I was doing these sprint intervals on the treadmill as part of my linebacker personal trainer session. I was up to a 6.5 minute per mile sprint, pretty damn freaking fast. We'd do one minute on like that, jump off, lift for 1 minute, heavy weights, low reps, and then run back to the treadmill and sprint again. These intervals would usually go fro anywhere from 30 to 45 minutes, depending upon how saucy I was feeling that day. I would do these once or twice a week. Then add to that a little bit of running or elliptical on the other days.
Anyway one day on the treadmill I had a massive shot of pain run down my groin towards my knee. It kinda went away after another few reps, so I didnt think too much of this. It would come back occasionally. I just thought it was the usual.
The only other completely weird thing that happened between then and about April was the soles of my feet started hurting after long runs. I replaced my shoes again, thought we were done with that.
Anyway, since late April I have been ramping up the miles, averaging around 23 miles per week. Some weeks I am in the teens, sometimes, near 30. All the while the pain in my groin to the knee has been growing more common. And add to that an extreme achey and sore outer hip, so much so that I can;t sleep on that side any longer.
Mostly this fucking pisses me off. I take my ibuprofen, the inflammation subsides, and I can run through it. For the most part, the pain subsides by mile 2. But I look like an old slow woman for the first 2 miles until things start to work themselves out.
A bunch of shit was running through my brain about what it could be. I have very poor veins in my right leg and though it might be related, deep vein thrombosis or something like that. Maybe venous insufficiency. Another thought was tendonitis, bursitis or a sports hernia. But it didnt get worse when I lifted or sneezed or anything so I though it wasnt a hernia.
So I needed to go to the Dr anyways to get a few scripts renewed and thought I would be honest and mention it to her. I did and without hesitation she said it sounded like I had a stress fracture in the head of my femur. Or it was in the hip itself. Boy I wished you guys could have seen my face because I couldnt believe that one. Never saw it coming. If this diagnosis holds, buh-bye marathon. Buy-bye running for minimum of 6 weeks. FUCK FUCK FUCK.
I have 300 miles in and now I might have to shut this down??!!! For real?!!!! WTF.
So I did what a lot of other dumbasses would do- I went for a 7 mile run-walk. I've been dealing with this for 6 months so until I am told to fuck off by my Dr., I am running conservatively. The weird thing is, I felt really good, and was even running 9 min/miles.
okay so where is it now: I've been hollered at by my friends, I have not told me family (and wont until its ruled in and out) and I have a MRI scheduled for 8am on Thursday.
And my groin hurts all the time now. Kinda like your underwear is 2 sizes too small and the elastic is pinching you beyond belief and then someone hits you in the pelvis with a barbell. Repeatedly.
So for the time being I am swimming laps and on the elliptical and walking outside until I hear something.
FUCK THIS ALL
Summary for this week.
M: 3mi
Tu: 2mi
W: 4 mi
Th: Linebacker workout and Dr's appt
Fri: 3 miles on the elliptical
Sat: Fuck all. Bought new shoes in hopes of being able to wear them.
Sun: Fuck this: Run-walk 7 miles. Felt fine.
totals for this lower mileage week: 19 miles.
Tuesday, July 27, 2010
Sunday, July 18, 2010
Marathon 2010: Week 2
Okay so here we go again. I am back at it, training for another one of these, despite trashing my body last year and having a bum hip this year. You see one of the best and worst things about me is that I am a fairly driven person. I set my mind to something and I get a little obsessed with completing that task. OCD at its finest I guess.
So despite my body falling apart, despite being sleep deprived, despite being under the most stress I have ever been in my life - IT'S ON BITCHES!
This year, I will make the 4:30 cut. And to do it, I enlisted my friend Randy. Randy has run about 10-15 marathons, including Boston. Twice. Randy rules. He has made up a training plan for me this year to get me to the finish line in one piece. Mostly we are looking at tempo runs and speed work, as well as way more miles than last year, including 3 20+ mile runs, instead of 1. I will NOT bonk this year. I will not. I will rule this.
Making things more complicated though is this hip injury. I thought it was a groin injury at first, but the pain travels between my groin and the inner part of my knee. I think I have some seriously tight hips and need to focus on stretching every freaking night. Plus I am taking vitamin B12 supplements as well, as my Mom tells me that this very thing happened to her and her Dr told her about B12. Cleared it up for her, as she was B12 deficient. I'll let you know. I've been on it for 1 week. Moderate improvement.
Anyway, I git a Garmin gps this year, so I can better track my pace. I love this thing, especially for my long runs to keep up the pace.
I do sprint intervals now too, currently consisting of 3 mil total with a 1600, 1200, 800, 800, 400, 200 ladder with 1 minute walk in between, with warmup and cooldown. Really tough but I am starting to love it. And, for the first time during training, I am dropping weight and body fat. Maybe I am on to something this year. Exercise more, eat less. Lose weight. Hmmm.
So this week besides the usual, I had another 10 mile long run over on the Waterville Towpath. I am out there at 8:30 on Sat morning but it is already hot as hell. This is going to suck. I ran 5 miles without stopping, but then started doing a 10 on, 1 powerwalk (13 min mile) so as to hydrate and do a survey of if my body is holding up. Everything is cool. I am even running an effing 9 minute mile at mile 7! what the shit! Well that was fleeting as about mile 8 the heat kicked up a notch and I ran out of water. Holy shit was that awful. Lesson learned. Two water bottles dummy. Finally found a water fountain with 0.9 miles to go. Slugged it down. Headed for home doing a 10:30 in the heat. Cool.
Anyway, I finished my run, feeling damn fine once I got in the shade. I was proud of myself for pushing through the heat. And my body felt fine to boot.
So for this week:
M: 3 mile tempo
Tu: linebacker personal trainer
W: 6 mile
Thurs: 3.5 miles intervals
Fri: 3 mile
Sat: 10 miles
Sun: REST
Total on the week: 25.5 miles
Total for the season now, since May: >275 miles. Yes that's right. Almost 300 miles already. Last year, I topped 300 at some point in late Sept. I will be better prepared this time.
So despite my body falling apart, despite being sleep deprived, despite being under the most stress I have ever been in my life - IT'S ON BITCHES!
This year, I will make the 4:30 cut. And to do it, I enlisted my friend Randy. Randy has run about 10-15 marathons, including Boston. Twice. Randy rules. He has made up a training plan for me this year to get me to the finish line in one piece. Mostly we are looking at tempo runs and speed work, as well as way more miles than last year, including 3 20+ mile runs, instead of 1. I will NOT bonk this year. I will not. I will rule this.
Making things more complicated though is this hip injury. I thought it was a groin injury at first, but the pain travels between my groin and the inner part of my knee. I think I have some seriously tight hips and need to focus on stretching every freaking night. Plus I am taking vitamin B12 supplements as well, as my Mom tells me that this very thing happened to her and her Dr told her about B12. Cleared it up for her, as she was B12 deficient. I'll let you know. I've been on it for 1 week. Moderate improvement.
Anyway, I git a Garmin gps this year, so I can better track my pace. I love this thing, especially for my long runs to keep up the pace.
I do sprint intervals now too, currently consisting of 3 mil total with a 1600, 1200, 800, 800, 400, 200 ladder with 1 minute walk in between, with warmup and cooldown. Really tough but I am starting to love it. And, for the first time during training, I am dropping weight and body fat. Maybe I am on to something this year. Exercise more, eat less. Lose weight. Hmmm.
So this week besides the usual, I had another 10 mile long run over on the Waterville Towpath. I am out there at 8:30 on Sat morning but it is already hot as hell. This is going to suck. I ran 5 miles without stopping, but then started doing a 10 on, 1 powerwalk (13 min mile) so as to hydrate and do a survey of if my body is holding up. Everything is cool. I am even running an effing 9 minute mile at mile 7! what the shit! Well that was fleeting as about mile 8 the heat kicked up a notch and I ran out of water. Holy shit was that awful. Lesson learned. Two water bottles dummy. Finally found a water fountain with 0.9 miles to go. Slugged it down. Headed for home doing a 10:30 in the heat. Cool.
Anyway, I finished my run, feeling damn fine once I got in the shade. I was proud of myself for pushing through the heat. And my body felt fine to boot.
So for this week:
M: 3 mile tempo
Tu: linebacker personal trainer
W: 6 mile
Thurs: 3.5 miles intervals
Fri: 3 mile
Sat: 10 miles
Sun: REST
Total on the week: 25.5 miles
Total for the season now, since May: >275 miles. Yes that's right. Almost 300 miles already. Last year, I topped 300 at some point in late Sept. I will be better prepared this time.
Final Week: the Marathon
So I am actually posting this in July 2010, rather than October 2009. For whatever reason, mostly fatigue, injury and lab shit, I did not get to finish documenting the final results. Well, better late than never, I guess.
That week was a fairly awful week, as usual. The marathon was on Oct 18 and I turned in another el Gigante Supergrant on October 12 that was worse than the one on Oct 5. BY THE WAY, I did infact get the Oct 5 grant, just over 1.6 million dollars! So well worth the hell I endured in the end.
Besides the friggin fatigue from that grant, my folks came in to volunteer for the marathon. I had them fly in Friday to Detroit, then on Sat we drove up to GR. We checked into our hotel rooms and went to try to find some bland food for me. But, my Dad decided he wanted to try San Chez tapas bistro, so off we went. No sangria for me, but I did chow on some garlic-y goodness. I have never seen someone make such a mess at the tables as my Dad. But damn, he loved his SanChez.
I was hurting in a bad way still- al the injuries and beating my body up for so many weeks had taken its toll. My knees were awful and the ankle was a wreck. After San Chez, we went back to the hotel and I did yoga and stretched for about an hour, before parking it in bed by 10pm. I was friggin nervous, had all my clothes set out along with my gear and set two alarm clocks.
Race time was 8am, but I wanted to get there by 7:30 or so. Also my folks were volunteering the finish line. When I got up about 6:30, I stretched some more and git everything ready. Oh well, now or never I guess.
We were about 1/3 mile from the start and from my hotel window I could see the volunteers setting up the first aid station. Dad needed some coffee and something to drink, so we hit the Starbucks real fast en route. I had had a bagel in the hotel room so I was goo. Just needed to drink my gatorade and hit a portapot. I borrowed my Dads fleece since it was really quite cold- about 40 degrees at that time in the morning. I was wearing my long tights, tank, and ghetto arm warmers (mens socks with the feet cut off). I had my water belt and 4 or five things of beans. And an ipod.
Hit the portapots and then ran into my old physical therapist from wrecked ACL days, Dave. I asked him how he was and he said fine, he was running the half. He asked if I was doing the same, and I told him I was doing the full. I think I made him feel good, as he had a big part in getting me functional again.
I missed Jenn at the start. And I didnt see any of my other friends. I knew Carrie, Cassie and Paul would be at >21 mile marker.
Anyway Mom and Dad wished me well and I was off, albeit slowly.
Well things were great for 6.5 miles or so. I was easily holding my 10 min mile. I was hanging with the crowd that was chasing Oprah's time (we followed a runner holding a pic of Oprah). It was a funny crowd. It was entertaining.
Then we should run up behind me but Chipper Jenn. Seems that she and her Dad got held up due to his having to hit the pot as well. Talk about weird. We chatted for a minute or two, then she went off ahead with her Dad.
So I am in cruise control now, hitting mile 10 and into Millenium Park. I've never run this before- it's pretty damn nice and chalk full of native wildflowers. Plus it was sunny and a beautiful morning. If you were going to do a marathon, this was the morning to do it.
At mile 11, I started talking to this one lady, Lisa. She was late 40s/early 50s. She was running alone as her daughter had to bow out due to injury. Lisa and I were both doing our first marathon and enjoying each others company, so we ran together until mile 16 or so. It was nice to have someone to chat with. The funniest bit was when she let out this monster fart at one point and was apologizing. Honey, we are 12 miles into this, farting is cool.
We passed the halfway point together in 130 minutes! WTF. I am holding my 10 minute mile.
Then we pass a very tall woman standing on the side of the road. As we pass, we see "she" is pissing on the side of the road. Standing up. So we had a tranny running the race. That's cool. Tranny is holding their own at mile 13.
Around mile 15, I decided I needed a quick walk break to get some liquids and food. Lisa and I walked together for 1 minute. I scarfed my food, she did too.
At mile 16, Lisa stopped again. She had her family meeting her. I was jealous. At this point I was getting pissed as I hadnt seen any of my friends that said they would be there. Let's face it, it's getting lonely and about this point the mental games begin. Also, at this point the course has folded back upon itself and you can see the runners ahead of you. They look great. You are starting to feel like crap. But I am still holding about a 10:15.
At about mile 17.5 the turnaround. Blessed be. Now I am the faster runner that the ones behind me see. I wave to Lisa. She isnt looking so good.
Again, I am pissed. Where are my friends.
Mile 19
Mile 20.
Wow did mile 20 suck. See somewhere along the line, I screwed up my eating and I was behind. And when you get behind this late in a race, its hard to catch up. The effect; my quads have started to seize up on me. All the gas is gone in them. I have now slowed to a 11 min mile, maybe slower.
Mile 21. Life sucks.
Mile 21.5: I hear a familiar screaming. IT'S CASSIE! Holy shit, there they are: Cassie, Paul and Carrie! I immediately feel better. Carrie jumps in with me. She is going to run 2 miles with me. We prearrange that there will be no miles faster than a 10 min mile. Well that's not going to be a problem. She sees I am bonking and starts talking to me, not expecting me to talk back, which I dont. My quads are so tight now it really hurts. I tell her I need to walk for a minute to get some food in me. We walk fast. We start back up. Another mile in, I tell her I need to stop. My quads need to be stretched out. Well I stopped and tried to grab onto a post to stretch and the whole world was doing the spins. Kinda like when you drink half a bottle of vodka in college. Okay, so not gonna stop de to massive blood pressure drop. Keep running, I tell myself. You can beat this, do it.
Carrie runs for almost 3 miles with me. She gets me out of the bonk and back into 11 minute mile territory. She ditches me just shy of mile 25. I've got this. I will not stop any more. I have walked a total of about 5 minutes and that it the last of it.
Now I start to come into GR and we get some spectators. Other people are looking as shitty as me. I really want this to be over soon. But I tell myself I need to perk up. Dammit, I need one good photo from race day.
Okay, mile 26. are you for real. I see it. I see the finish. Wait, is that Jenn? She is there hollering! And then Art screams at me. And then I cross the line and completely miss my parents! My Mom never saw me and my Dad was on the can! I get y metallic blanket and my medal and continue to walk. I cannot believe I just did this shit. I feel fine. I mean, I feel really good.
I scarf some food down and see Art and Jenn. They come over and we start to chat while standing still. Bad idea. After a few minutes, I wonder where my folks are. I hobble over to the finish and see them. They are a little pissed they missed me. I kinda thought it was funny. I see Lisa cross the finish line. I give her a thumbs up. She looks worse than me. We laugh.
We scarfed some food, exchanged stories about the run (me and Jenn) and got some beer and chili. I can't believe I just did this shit. But I was pissed. I finished in 4:49. I wanted the 4:30. The bonk absolutely killed it for me.
I tried stepping off the curb and that was an awful idea. My hams and quads are the size of baseballs now.
We all said our tatas as we will be at the bar later. I hobbled back to the hotel and took a long long shower. I was salty like a pirate. And I had the most massive sports bra burn on my chest. My toes were blistered, but nothing out of the ordinary.
Weird thing, I couldnt nap. Too much adrenaline still.
Anyway the bar was good- wasnt so hungry or thirsty. Fatigue started to hit me then.
The next day we walk around downtown along the River. My legs are complaining, but they are getting better. I am not as nonfunctional as I thought I might have been. Funny thing, knees and ankle were absolutely fine during thsi whole run.
So my summary after all of this: I am insane. I finished my first marathon and the overwhelming emotion was: I am pissed. Pissed I missed the time I was shooting for. Pissed I effed up my eating which led to the bonk. Pissed. And I determined at that moment I would do this again and be faster.
Of course since then a lot of things have happened. I injured y back pretty bad in November and had to see a chiropractor. I couldnt walk upright for a few days and for weeks, I didnt run. I ended up gaining about 7 or 8# during this time, mainly as I am still eating like I am running 30 miles a week when I am running none. And I have since developed a nagging hip injury. Not sure what's going on there, but I slog on.
I have since completed another Irish Jig and all but shotgun-ran the Riverbank 25k in 2:30. I also ran the 6.5 mile long leg of the Toledo Marathon, team competition. I feel a lot slower this year, but I think I am working back into it at a better pace, while watching this hip thing. I need to train better this year, to avoid falling apart like I did this first time. I have now lost the weight I put on, and am working towards another 15# in the next 3 months. I think this will help me with the joints and I will look smoking then too.
Anyway that's the conclusion of marathon #1 I'll be starting the chronicles of Marathon #2 next, so you can see the progression from a goal of completion progress into "I'm gonna effing kick that marathon's ass".
That week was a fairly awful week, as usual. The marathon was on Oct 18 and I turned in another el Gigante Supergrant on October 12 that was worse than the one on Oct 5. BY THE WAY, I did infact get the Oct 5 grant, just over 1.6 million dollars! So well worth the hell I endured in the end.
Besides the friggin fatigue from that grant, my folks came in to volunteer for the marathon. I had them fly in Friday to Detroit, then on Sat we drove up to GR. We checked into our hotel rooms and went to try to find some bland food for me. But, my Dad decided he wanted to try San Chez tapas bistro, so off we went. No sangria for me, but I did chow on some garlic-y goodness. I have never seen someone make such a mess at the tables as my Dad. But damn, he loved his SanChez.
I was hurting in a bad way still- al the injuries and beating my body up for so many weeks had taken its toll. My knees were awful and the ankle was a wreck. After San Chez, we went back to the hotel and I did yoga and stretched for about an hour, before parking it in bed by 10pm. I was friggin nervous, had all my clothes set out along with my gear and set two alarm clocks.
Race time was 8am, but I wanted to get there by 7:30 or so. Also my folks were volunteering the finish line. When I got up about 6:30, I stretched some more and git everything ready. Oh well, now or never I guess.
We were about 1/3 mile from the start and from my hotel window I could see the volunteers setting up the first aid station. Dad needed some coffee and something to drink, so we hit the Starbucks real fast en route. I had had a bagel in the hotel room so I was goo. Just needed to drink my gatorade and hit a portapot. I borrowed my Dads fleece since it was really quite cold- about 40 degrees at that time in the morning. I was wearing my long tights, tank, and ghetto arm warmers (mens socks with the feet cut off). I had my water belt and 4 or five things of beans. And an ipod.
Hit the portapots and then ran into my old physical therapist from wrecked ACL days, Dave. I asked him how he was and he said fine, he was running the half. He asked if I was doing the same, and I told him I was doing the full. I think I made him feel good, as he had a big part in getting me functional again.
I missed Jenn at the start. And I didnt see any of my other friends. I knew Carrie, Cassie and Paul would be at >21 mile marker.
Anyway Mom and Dad wished me well and I was off, albeit slowly.
Well things were great for 6.5 miles or so. I was easily holding my 10 min mile. I was hanging with the crowd that was chasing Oprah's time (we followed a runner holding a pic of Oprah). It was a funny crowd. It was entertaining.
Then we should run up behind me but Chipper Jenn. Seems that she and her Dad got held up due to his having to hit the pot as well. Talk about weird. We chatted for a minute or two, then she went off ahead with her Dad.
So I am in cruise control now, hitting mile 10 and into Millenium Park. I've never run this before- it's pretty damn nice and chalk full of native wildflowers. Plus it was sunny and a beautiful morning. If you were going to do a marathon, this was the morning to do it.
At mile 11, I started talking to this one lady, Lisa. She was late 40s/early 50s. She was running alone as her daughter had to bow out due to injury. Lisa and I were both doing our first marathon and enjoying each others company, so we ran together until mile 16 or so. It was nice to have someone to chat with. The funniest bit was when she let out this monster fart at one point and was apologizing. Honey, we are 12 miles into this, farting is cool.
We passed the halfway point together in 130 minutes! WTF. I am holding my 10 minute mile.
Then we pass a very tall woman standing on the side of the road. As we pass, we see "she" is pissing on the side of the road. Standing up. So we had a tranny running the race. That's cool. Tranny is holding their own at mile 13.
Around mile 15, I decided I needed a quick walk break to get some liquids and food. Lisa and I walked together for 1 minute. I scarfed my food, she did too.
At mile 16, Lisa stopped again. She had her family meeting her. I was jealous. At this point I was getting pissed as I hadnt seen any of my friends that said they would be there. Let's face it, it's getting lonely and about this point the mental games begin. Also, at this point the course has folded back upon itself and you can see the runners ahead of you. They look great. You are starting to feel like crap. But I am still holding about a 10:15.
At about mile 17.5 the turnaround. Blessed be. Now I am the faster runner that the ones behind me see. I wave to Lisa. She isnt looking so good.
Again, I am pissed. Where are my friends.
Mile 19
Mile 20.
Wow did mile 20 suck. See somewhere along the line, I screwed up my eating and I was behind. And when you get behind this late in a race, its hard to catch up. The effect; my quads have started to seize up on me. All the gas is gone in them. I have now slowed to a 11 min mile, maybe slower.
Mile 21. Life sucks.
Mile 21.5: I hear a familiar screaming. IT'S CASSIE! Holy shit, there they are: Cassie, Paul and Carrie! I immediately feel better. Carrie jumps in with me. She is going to run 2 miles with me. We prearrange that there will be no miles faster than a 10 min mile. Well that's not going to be a problem. She sees I am bonking and starts talking to me, not expecting me to talk back, which I dont. My quads are so tight now it really hurts. I tell her I need to walk for a minute to get some food in me. We walk fast. We start back up. Another mile in, I tell her I need to stop. My quads need to be stretched out. Well I stopped and tried to grab onto a post to stretch and the whole world was doing the spins. Kinda like when you drink half a bottle of vodka in college. Okay, so not gonna stop de to massive blood pressure drop. Keep running, I tell myself. You can beat this, do it.
Carrie runs for almost 3 miles with me. She gets me out of the bonk and back into 11 minute mile territory. She ditches me just shy of mile 25. I've got this. I will not stop any more. I have walked a total of about 5 minutes and that it the last of it.
Now I start to come into GR and we get some spectators. Other people are looking as shitty as me. I really want this to be over soon. But I tell myself I need to perk up. Dammit, I need one good photo from race day.
Okay, mile 26. are you for real. I see it. I see the finish. Wait, is that Jenn? She is there hollering! And then Art screams at me. And then I cross the line and completely miss my parents! My Mom never saw me and my Dad was on the can! I get y metallic blanket and my medal and continue to walk. I cannot believe I just did this shit. I feel fine. I mean, I feel really good.
I scarf some food down and see Art and Jenn. They come over and we start to chat while standing still. Bad idea. After a few minutes, I wonder where my folks are. I hobble over to the finish and see them. They are a little pissed they missed me. I kinda thought it was funny. I see Lisa cross the finish line. I give her a thumbs up. She looks worse than me. We laugh.
We scarfed some food, exchanged stories about the run (me and Jenn) and got some beer and chili. I can't believe I just did this shit. But I was pissed. I finished in 4:49. I wanted the 4:30. The bonk absolutely killed it for me.
I tried stepping off the curb and that was an awful idea. My hams and quads are the size of baseballs now.
We all said our tatas as we will be at the bar later. I hobbled back to the hotel and took a long long shower. I was salty like a pirate. And I had the most massive sports bra burn on my chest. My toes were blistered, but nothing out of the ordinary.
Weird thing, I couldnt nap. Too much adrenaline still.
Anyway the bar was good- wasnt so hungry or thirsty. Fatigue started to hit me then.
The next day we walk around downtown along the River. My legs are complaining, but they are getting better. I am not as nonfunctional as I thought I might have been. Funny thing, knees and ankle were absolutely fine during thsi whole run.
So my summary after all of this: I am insane. I finished my first marathon and the overwhelming emotion was: I am pissed. Pissed I missed the time I was shooting for. Pissed I effed up my eating which led to the bonk. Pissed. And I determined at that moment I would do this again and be faster.
Of course since then a lot of things have happened. I injured y back pretty bad in November and had to see a chiropractor. I couldnt walk upright for a few days and for weeks, I didnt run. I ended up gaining about 7 or 8# during this time, mainly as I am still eating like I am running 30 miles a week when I am running none. And I have since developed a nagging hip injury. Not sure what's going on there, but I slog on.
I have since completed another Irish Jig and all but shotgun-ran the Riverbank 25k in 2:30. I also ran the 6.5 mile long leg of the Toledo Marathon, team competition. I feel a lot slower this year, but I think I am working back into it at a better pace, while watching this hip thing. I need to train better this year, to avoid falling apart like I did this first time. I have now lost the weight I put on, and am working towards another 15# in the next 3 months. I think this will help me with the joints and I will look smoking then too.
Anyway that's the conclusion of marathon #1 I'll be starting the chronicles of Marathon #2 next, so you can see the progression from a goal of completion progress into "I'm gonna effing kick that marathon's ass".
Sunday, October 11, 2009
Week 19: OMG! It's coming!
Holy crap I really can't believe this that it's my last full week of kinda sorta training. I've been at this shit for 19 documented weeks and I need it to be over. My body needs a rest man. I dont know about these people that run a few of these things throughout the year. Maybe it's like biking where you have to kind of break your ass into your seat, so your sit bones dont hurt like a mo-fo when you ride distances? Dunno.
Anyway, I submitted el gigante supergrant on Monday and so Monday night I drank beer and then passed out cold on my couch before 9pm. Woke up at 1am with couch fabric marks on my face. Cool.
Tuesday I went to trainer and ran for 2 miles. It was good. I felt better. I was still so incredibly tired, but I am going to get to bed early anyway.
Wed: non functional still. Skipped all exercise. went to bed.
Thursday: Trainer running FAST (8 min/mil) for 2 miles on treadmill. Then I splot and ran another fast 3 miles around my neighborhood. Felt really good and fast. NOthing hurt enough t report about!
Friday: drove to GR, MI to do house maintenance and drink beer, eat sushi w friends
Sat. ran my old stomping grounds of Reeds Lake. 4.5 of pathetic slowness. My knee was not cooperating (clicking behind knee is getting old!). Took about 3 miles to work out the kinks and then it was good. I think it's just fatigue still haunting me.
Sun: RECOVERY MOUNTAIN BIKING!!!!! 6 miles out at Ionia with Art. Was quite a bit more tentative than usual (grrr) as all the leaves dropped on the trail, and it was slippery from the rains on Friday. In the end, a good ride to work out the weirdness behind me knee, and to gain a few more bruises on my healing ankle, as i ENDO-ed in a big way in the last ,5 miles of the trail. I dont know wtf I did. I just laughed because I am a dork.
so I'm gonna chill this week- nothing more than 5ks, and nothing over 2miles on Thurs/Fri.
so 2+2+4.5+6 bike=14.5mi TAPER BABY. LOve it!
Anyway, I submitted el gigante supergrant on Monday and so Monday night I drank beer and then passed out cold on my couch before 9pm. Woke up at 1am with couch fabric marks on my face. Cool.
Tuesday I went to trainer and ran for 2 miles. It was good. I felt better. I was still so incredibly tired, but I am going to get to bed early anyway.
Wed: non functional still. Skipped all exercise. went to bed.
Thursday: Trainer running FAST (8 min/mil) for 2 miles on treadmill. Then I splot and ran another fast 3 miles around my neighborhood. Felt really good and fast. NOthing hurt enough t report about!
Friday: drove to GR, MI to do house maintenance and drink beer, eat sushi w friends
Sat. ran my old stomping grounds of Reeds Lake. 4.5 of pathetic slowness. My knee was not cooperating (clicking behind knee is getting old!). Took about 3 miles to work out the kinks and then it was good. I think it's just fatigue still haunting me.
Sun: RECOVERY MOUNTAIN BIKING!!!!! 6 miles out at Ionia with Art. Was quite a bit more tentative than usual (grrr) as all the leaves dropped on the trail, and it was slippery from the rains on Friday. In the end, a good ride to work out the weirdness behind me knee, and to gain a few more bruises on my healing ankle, as i ENDO-ed in a big way in the last ,5 miles of the trail. I dont know wtf I did. I just laughed because I am a dork.
so I'm gonna chill this week- nothing more than 5ks, and nothing over 2miles on Thurs/Fri.
so 2+2+4.5+6 bike=14.5mi TAPER BABY. LOve it!
Week 18:Taper Baby! Taper!
In honor of the beginning of the two week long taper, I'll keep this week's recap short. Mostly because I'm entering this a week later than I should have and cant really remember the week's events, outside of the fact that it was nuts as I was submitting my first ever R01 el gigante super grant. It's kind of a blur as I wrote the grant in less than 2 weeks, sfter staying up for 20 hrs or more every day for said two weeks. I cant do that shit anymore, man.
So if I recall, through the writing and healing from the freaking walnut incident (OMG the ankle was huge!!!! and purple!!!) I ran about 3 days, only 2 miles x2 and then a 5 miler on Saturday. Mostly I was trying to stay off the ankle as it wasnt looking good. I iced throughout the early week and elevated it as much as possible. I did get a mall lace-up brace, which helped a lot. I think the weirdest thing though was the lack of pain. Usually I cant walk on these when I turn my ankle and I am out for a few weeks. Surprisingly, the ankle deflated in about a week or so, never hurt except for the evening that I did it, and when I started to run on it again, after crosstraining through the week, IT WAS FINE! As long as I dont touch it on the sides, it's all good to go I guess. So I am currently making the call as to whether I am running with the brace or not.
Anyway, that's about it. I nearly killed myself on a walnut, on a grant submission and need to sleep.
9 miles total this week on the taper.
So if I recall, through the writing and healing from the freaking walnut incident (OMG the ankle was huge!!!! and purple!!!) I ran about 3 days, only 2 miles x2 and then a 5 miler on Saturday. Mostly I was trying to stay off the ankle as it wasnt looking good. I iced throughout the early week and elevated it as much as possible. I did get a mall lace-up brace, which helped a lot. I think the weirdest thing though was the lack of pain. Usually I cant walk on these when I turn my ankle and I am out for a few weeks. Surprisingly, the ankle deflated in about a week or so, never hurt except for the evening that I did it, and when I started to run on it again, after crosstraining through the week, IT WAS FINE! As long as I dont touch it on the sides, it's all good to go I guess. So I am currently making the call as to whether I am running with the brace or not.
Anyway, that's about it. I nearly killed myself on a walnut, on a grant submission and need to sleep.
9 miles total this week on the taper.
Wednesday, September 30, 2009
Week 17: Foiled by a.... walnut?
okay so I left you last after a really shitty run through the rapids in GR on a Sunday with my friend Jenn. Jenn smoked it. I did not- even though I made my time goal TO THE SECOND.
This week though, I was feeling the pinch of some major overuse in my left knee, despite wearing the strappy knee cap thingee. I was also feeling freaking exhausted, fatigued, fried- you name it. I was these. I think this is probably encroaching upon the dreaded burnout. Let's face it. I have been abusing my body for 17+ weeks now without fail, without a weekend off. And it was starting to weight heavily on me.
So I decided to go against my training book and rest up. No 5 milesx2 runs this week. Instead it was 2x2 miles running during the week, coupled with only one trainer session. After all, allegedly I was supposed to do some 22 miles run this weekend (Ack!).
So here's the low-down.
Monday: 0. Sleep. Try to work on grant. Oh yeah, I have a 1.7 million dollar research grant going in on Oct 5, followed by a 1 million dollar one on Oct 15. Did I mention that crap too?!
Tuesday. No trainer. She has to work her second job that night. So I went out for a 2 mile test run, as my knees were in terrible shape. It was awful! I was limping and wanted to cry for the first 5 minutes. Then I STFU and ran. Worked it out by the 2 mile mark, but stopped there. 11 minute mile. Fine. I'll take it.
Wednesday. No trainer. Bailed on my strappy class to go and try out knees again. Again, awful forst few minutes, followed by focusing on lengthening the stride, standing upright and S-ing TFU. Worked. I felt good after 2, and did them in a 10:30.
Thursday: Trainer. Decided to do the versa climber to give my joints a little break again as I was still a bit creaky. We're dropping the leg weights now too for the next few weeks, to give my muscles a little bit f a break. It's all good. I'm still getting my ass kicked, so no worries.
Friday: 0. Beers with a few other faculty after work. SCARFED down food later that night in anticipation of the 22 miles on Sat. Only to be
Sat: foiled by rain. foiled by science. I thought about it and I needed to crank out a full day and a half on the grant before blasting my body and mind with 4.5 hours of continuous exercise. So I worked, ran errands and rested everything. Also started the preemptive ibuprofen in the evening.
Sunday: here we go. I needed to be on the trail by 2pm, best I figured, since I was anticipating 4.5 hrs at an 11-12 min mile for 22 miles or so. I actually felt great. Lubed up, decided to run sans hat this time since I look awful in any picture where I am wearing a visor and I have been running (vanity, I know). I wear shades anyways, so it wasnt necessary. So I decided to run on the Tpwpath, along the river, on a stretch I have only done once. The plan was to run 10 miles out, 10 back, and do a 2 mile loop to finish up.
I started running and felt AWESOME> Rest and eating does a body good. I was enjoying the run on the unpaved trail (crushed limestone) and be careful not to steo upon any felled walnuts from the trees that lined the path. Apparently I wasnt careful enough as my left foot stepped right on a big fat green one; my left ankle turned outward and I went down on my left side HARD. "broke" my fall kinda with my left palm, losing a chuck of flesh to the trail. You dont WANT to know the language that came out of my mouth after I caught my breath (Jenn would have a good idea). I was so pissed, and when I tried to get up, it was obvious that I had sprained it. What did dummy here decide to do? Dammit- run another freaking 19 miles, that's what I did. The ankle blew up by mile 6, but dammit, I was getting this last run over with. As long as I did not stop, things were fine, as it's a very easy, non rolling motion, this running thing- when done right. So I just kept motoring at more like a 12 minute mile at first, which feels LIKE YOU ARE CRAB-WALKING. Eventually I brought it up to a n 11 min mile and I was happy again. The point of it was, if it doesnt hurt and get gradually worse, you didnt break anything therefore keep going. At least in my stupid world that's how it works.
So things learned on this long run:
1. if you're not first, you're last
2. if you can still move forward, shut up and do it.
3. Lube your triceps. You lose form at mile 19 and they rub against your boobs
4. Lube where ever your sportsbra touches your body
5. Drink more water between miles 10 and 17.
6. Tennis balls are awesome for moving fluid out of your resulting cankle.
and most importantly, AVOID WALNUTS LIKE THE PLAGUE!
Total for the week:
2+2+22=26 miles.
Well folks, it's on to the TAPER! I cannot wait. I have a few days to kinda take it easier on the foot, doing some crosstraining, and then hit a 6 miler this weekend to test out my blue and purple cankle.
This week though, I was feeling the pinch of some major overuse in my left knee, despite wearing the strappy knee cap thingee. I was also feeling freaking exhausted, fatigued, fried- you name it. I was these. I think this is probably encroaching upon the dreaded burnout. Let's face it. I have been abusing my body for 17+ weeks now without fail, without a weekend off. And it was starting to weight heavily on me.
So I decided to go against my training book and rest up. No 5 milesx2 runs this week. Instead it was 2x2 miles running during the week, coupled with only one trainer session. After all, allegedly I was supposed to do some 22 miles run this weekend (Ack!).
So here's the low-down.
Monday: 0. Sleep. Try to work on grant. Oh yeah, I have a 1.7 million dollar research grant going in on Oct 5, followed by a 1 million dollar one on Oct 15. Did I mention that crap too?!
Tuesday. No trainer. She has to work her second job that night. So I went out for a 2 mile test run, as my knees were in terrible shape. It was awful! I was limping and wanted to cry for the first 5 minutes. Then I STFU and ran. Worked it out by the 2 mile mark, but stopped there. 11 minute mile. Fine. I'll take it.
Wednesday. No trainer. Bailed on my strappy class to go and try out knees again. Again, awful forst few minutes, followed by focusing on lengthening the stride, standing upright and S-ing TFU. Worked. I felt good after 2, and did them in a 10:30.
Thursday: Trainer. Decided to do the versa climber to give my joints a little break again as I was still a bit creaky. We're dropping the leg weights now too for the next few weeks, to give my muscles a little bit f a break. It's all good. I'm still getting my ass kicked, so no worries.
Friday: 0. Beers with a few other faculty after work. SCARFED down food later that night in anticipation of the 22 miles on Sat. Only to be
Sat: foiled by rain. foiled by science. I thought about it and I needed to crank out a full day and a half on the grant before blasting my body and mind with 4.5 hours of continuous exercise. So I worked, ran errands and rested everything. Also started the preemptive ibuprofen in the evening.
Sunday: here we go. I needed to be on the trail by 2pm, best I figured, since I was anticipating 4.5 hrs at an 11-12 min mile for 22 miles or so. I actually felt great. Lubed up, decided to run sans hat this time since I look awful in any picture where I am wearing a visor and I have been running (vanity, I know). I wear shades anyways, so it wasnt necessary. So I decided to run on the Tpwpath, along the river, on a stretch I have only done once. The plan was to run 10 miles out, 10 back, and do a 2 mile loop to finish up.
I started running and felt AWESOME> Rest and eating does a body good. I was enjoying the run on the unpaved trail (crushed limestone) and be careful not to steo upon any felled walnuts from the trees that lined the path. Apparently I wasnt careful enough as my left foot stepped right on a big fat green one; my left ankle turned outward and I went down on my left side HARD. "broke" my fall kinda with my left palm, losing a chuck of flesh to the trail. You dont WANT to know the language that came out of my mouth after I caught my breath (Jenn would have a good idea). I was so pissed, and when I tried to get up, it was obvious that I had sprained it. What did dummy here decide to do? Dammit- run another freaking 19 miles, that's what I did. The ankle blew up by mile 6, but dammit, I was getting this last run over with. As long as I did not stop, things were fine, as it's a very easy, non rolling motion, this running thing- when done right. So I just kept motoring at more like a 12 minute mile at first, which feels LIKE YOU ARE CRAB-WALKING. Eventually I brought it up to a n 11 min mile and I was happy again. The point of it was, if it doesnt hurt and get gradually worse, you didnt break anything therefore keep going. At least in my stupid world that's how it works.
So things learned on this long run:
1. if you're not first, you're last
2. if you can still move forward, shut up and do it.
3. Lube your triceps. You lose form at mile 19 and they rub against your boobs
4. Lube where ever your sportsbra touches your body
5. Drink more water between miles 10 and 17.
6. Tennis balls are awesome for moving fluid out of your resulting cankle.
and most importantly, AVOID WALNUTS LIKE THE PLAGUE!
Total for the week:
2+2+22=26 miles.
Well folks, it's on to the TAPER! I cannot wait. I have a few days to kinda take it easier on the foot, doing some crosstraining, and then hit a 6 miler this weekend to test out my blue and purple cankle.
Wednesday, September 23, 2009
Week 16: Since when is a 10 mile run a "rest up" week?
Okay, so when I left off, the knee pain was starting to kick in and I was employing the little knee strappy thingee, some drugs and some gumption to power through this mess. And power through that 18 ile training run I did. ANd the blessed 90 minute massage (all together now, ahhhhh)
This week was a hot mess on multiple fronts. One: I am three weeks away from submitting my first ever NIH R01 grant. It's a big sucker: 25 pages of research proposal, about another 50 pages of administrative junk. Basically it's a request for 700,000$ or so for 5 years worth of work. It's pretty difficult to project out 5 yrs, let alone 5 weeks! So the runs are kinda a nice break for me.
Now due to this craziness, I am actually very glad to be training during this time, as everyone I know loses it during this last push, usually resulting in weight gain. So at least I can hold steady during this time, due to the training. And I am keeping my neck muscle seizures to a minimum right now. They still creep up when I want to throttle people, but not as bad as 6 months ago, when they incapacitated me!
Anyway, this was a not very good week for the knees. After the weekend's exertions, Monday was a bad day for knees, but I had to go and test things out. I was supposed to do 5 miles or so, but I decided to do 4.2 in the back meadow again, so as to keep off the pavement. I cant tell you how much it hurt to start running for the first 2 minutes. I was kinda throwing my right (good) side around and hopping on the left side. The biggest problem was that my left knee is locking in the straight position on the back pushoff. It's basically trying to buckle backwards. Now, if I focus on form and LIFT MY KNEES, I can start to resolve these issues. But it's only working so much. I have screwed with my knees for so long now, this was bound to happen. I mean basically I have done 25k training before. But the longest run I do for those is a 12 miler, and I only do that once, along with a 10, a 9 and two 8s. This has been 12-18 miles like 8 times now! Anyway, with a little bit of run-walk, I slogged through the 4.2 miles in an 11 minute mile. Okay. I can deal with that. I iced my knees that night though, and drugged out on some ibuprofen.
Tuesday I had my trainer session and we backed off on leg extensions, which was good. Did a lot of upper body and hamstrings. I ran on the treadmill for about 3 miles, as we did linebacker for 60 minutes as a threesome, instead of the usual 30. It was rough. The circuit was treadmill, weights, versaclimber. I passed out that evening at 9pm.
Wed: I went to my strappy cardio strength training class. A lot of step aerobics to start, so I immediately felt like a 90 yr old woman. I slogged it out and got another great upper body and hip workout.
Thursday: No trainer today so I went and hit the meadow again for another 4.2 miles. This tie I did not walk any parts of it, and after pushing through a very uncomfortable 2 miles, decided to say screw it and kick it into a 9:30 for the last 2 miles. It kind of worked things out and my stride elongated and I was nt doing the Quasimoto shuffle any longer. I also diverted my attentions during this run by constructing a letter to Oprah in my head, cursing her for setting the bar at a 10 minute mile for the damn race. Curses Oprah, curses! Anyway, made it through, unscathed. Iced it up big time again when I got home.
Friday: not an off day. This was CUSTER DAY! Hurray! Custer is my FAVORITE mountain bike trail in MIchigan, where I am two-time defending champion (in my age group, and class, but pay no mind to the details). I love to go really fast at Custer as I have been able to memorize a good portion of the trail, and despite munching it BIG time there during a race, I still come back for more as it is a technically demanding trail. I took a half day from work (really should not have) and went to meet Graveels and Jenn. This was Jenn's inaugural ride at Custer and I think, despite her teeth grinding and mumbling, she likes it. I have never seen a 100lb person wipe out and kick up such a ginormous cloud of dust as Jenn. Anyway. Custer was what the Dr ordered. We did 8 miles or so- I would have liked to have done 15-20mi if I had the time, as it just worked out all the knee pain from the past week. It was unbelievable.
Saturday: Worked at my house digging crap up again. Didnt eat enough as usual. And then Graveels had a brilliant idea to make nachos for dinner. Mind you this is a pre-race dinner as I am in town to run the Bridge run with Jenn.
I
AM
Dumb
I was so hungry I scarfed it down, damn the consequences, which reared their ugly heads at 6am. I'll spare you the details.
Sunday: race day. An exercise in what not to wear. Like the long sleeved shirt. Dont wear the giant long sleeved shirt when running, just because it's 45 degrees at the start. Because you'll want to rip it off within 2 miles. Okay so here's where I meet Jenn and we jog to the start line from the stute. It's pretty pathetic since she is hurting from her Custer falls, and my knees have reawoken just in time for the race. We talked it over and were shooting for a 10 minute mile + pace. Apparently Speedy Gonzales had other plans- like an opening 8:45/mil pace. What the shit?! Well, we also discussed that if one was faster - just go. This was not a no-drop run. It was a race. So Jenn powered ahead and I kept looking for a damn portapot, as she convinced me that my full bladder would just go away once I started running. Ummm, no. Hit one at 6 miles finally, and came out, and the sun was shining, the birds were singing, and I felt 15 lbs lighter!
I had promised myself to finish in 100 minutes, a 10 minute mile for 10 miles, and holy crap I finished in 100.00 minutes to the second! I am glad I did this race, although I gotta tell you, I was seriously flogged afterwards.
So our tally, going into the last huge training week prior to the taper...
Mon 4.2
Tues 3 + Xtrain
Wed Xtrain
Th 4.2
Fri 8 mile bike
Sat 0
Sun 10.
so run: 21.4 mi + 8 mi bike
And this was a back down week? WTF!
This week was a hot mess on multiple fronts. One: I am three weeks away from submitting my first ever NIH R01 grant. It's a big sucker: 25 pages of research proposal, about another 50 pages of administrative junk. Basically it's a request for 700,000$ or so for 5 years worth of work. It's pretty difficult to project out 5 yrs, let alone 5 weeks! So the runs are kinda a nice break for me.
Now due to this craziness, I am actually very glad to be training during this time, as everyone I know loses it during this last push, usually resulting in weight gain. So at least I can hold steady during this time, due to the training. And I am keeping my neck muscle seizures to a minimum right now. They still creep up when I want to throttle people, but not as bad as 6 months ago, when they incapacitated me!
Anyway, this was a not very good week for the knees. After the weekend's exertions, Monday was a bad day for knees, but I had to go and test things out. I was supposed to do 5 miles or so, but I decided to do 4.2 in the back meadow again, so as to keep off the pavement. I cant tell you how much it hurt to start running for the first 2 minutes. I was kinda throwing my right (good) side around and hopping on the left side. The biggest problem was that my left knee is locking in the straight position on the back pushoff. It's basically trying to buckle backwards. Now, if I focus on form and LIFT MY KNEES, I can start to resolve these issues. But it's only working so much. I have screwed with my knees for so long now, this was bound to happen. I mean basically I have done 25k training before. But the longest run I do for those is a 12 miler, and I only do that once, along with a 10, a 9 and two 8s. This has been 12-18 miles like 8 times now! Anyway, with a little bit of run-walk, I slogged through the 4.2 miles in an 11 minute mile. Okay. I can deal with that. I iced my knees that night though, and drugged out on some ibuprofen.
Tuesday I had my trainer session and we backed off on leg extensions, which was good. Did a lot of upper body and hamstrings. I ran on the treadmill for about 3 miles, as we did linebacker for 60 minutes as a threesome, instead of the usual 30. It was rough. The circuit was treadmill, weights, versaclimber. I passed out that evening at 9pm.
Wed: I went to my strappy cardio strength training class. A lot of step aerobics to start, so I immediately felt like a 90 yr old woman. I slogged it out and got another great upper body and hip workout.
Thursday: No trainer today so I went and hit the meadow again for another 4.2 miles. This tie I did not walk any parts of it, and after pushing through a very uncomfortable 2 miles, decided to say screw it and kick it into a 9:30 for the last 2 miles. It kind of worked things out and my stride elongated and I was nt doing the Quasimoto shuffle any longer. I also diverted my attentions during this run by constructing a letter to Oprah in my head, cursing her for setting the bar at a 10 minute mile for the damn race. Curses Oprah, curses! Anyway, made it through, unscathed. Iced it up big time again when I got home.
Friday: not an off day. This was CUSTER DAY! Hurray! Custer is my FAVORITE mountain bike trail in MIchigan, where I am two-time defending champion (in my age group, and class, but pay no mind to the details). I love to go really fast at Custer as I have been able to memorize a good portion of the trail, and despite munching it BIG time there during a race, I still come back for more as it is a technically demanding trail. I took a half day from work (really should not have) and went to meet Graveels and Jenn. This was Jenn's inaugural ride at Custer and I think, despite her teeth grinding and mumbling, she likes it. I have never seen a 100lb person wipe out and kick up such a ginormous cloud of dust as Jenn. Anyway. Custer was what the Dr ordered. We did 8 miles or so- I would have liked to have done 15-20mi if I had the time, as it just worked out all the knee pain from the past week. It was unbelievable.
Saturday: Worked at my house digging crap up again. Didnt eat enough as usual. And then Graveels had a brilliant idea to make nachos for dinner. Mind you this is a pre-race dinner as I am in town to run the Bridge run with Jenn.
I
AM
Dumb
I was so hungry I scarfed it down, damn the consequences, which reared their ugly heads at 6am. I'll spare you the details.
Sunday: race day. An exercise in what not to wear. Like the long sleeved shirt. Dont wear the giant long sleeved shirt when running, just because it's 45 degrees at the start. Because you'll want to rip it off within 2 miles. Okay so here's where I meet Jenn and we jog to the start line from the stute. It's pretty pathetic since she is hurting from her Custer falls, and my knees have reawoken just in time for the race. We talked it over and were shooting for a 10 minute mile + pace. Apparently Speedy Gonzales had other plans- like an opening 8:45/mil pace. What the shit?! Well, we also discussed that if one was faster - just go. This was not a no-drop run. It was a race. So Jenn powered ahead and I kept looking for a damn portapot, as she convinced me that my full bladder would just go away once I started running. Ummm, no. Hit one at 6 miles finally, and came out, and the sun was shining, the birds were singing, and I felt 15 lbs lighter!
I had promised myself to finish in 100 minutes, a 10 minute mile for 10 miles, and holy crap I finished in 100.00 minutes to the second! I am glad I did this race, although I gotta tell you, I was seriously flogged afterwards.
So our tally, going into the last huge training week prior to the taper...
Mon 4.2
Tues 3 + Xtrain
Wed Xtrain
Th 4.2
Fri 8 mile bike
Sat 0
Sun 10.
so run: 21.4 mi + 8 mi bike
And this was a back down week? WTF!
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