20 mile run

I am watching the movie "Spirit of the Marathon" right now and realized I never posted about my latest training run.  I ran Sunday because Rachel, my usual running partner, could not make it on Saturday and I always run a lot better with her because we are about the same pace.  When I went to my car to leave, there was frost on the roof, which did not give me the greatest feeling.  We got started and it was still only about 35 degrees.  It slowly warmed up as time went on.  The first 10 miles or so were great and actually faster than my expected pace.  At 16 miles, I was still feeling fairly good, but after that my knee was really starting to act up.  For the remainder of the run, it was strictly fighting through pain.  I could barely walk at the end.

I am pretty sure I have an IT band, so I have been focusing on stretching, icing, elevating, etc.  I even did something I told myself I would never do and consult a chiro.  I went for a short run today and it didn't feel too bad after I got going, so I think if I continue my stretching and take care of it, I should be fine come race day.  It's time to really dig deep and be a fighter.  I am running to honor Matthew and he is a fighter, so I need to do the same.

The Des Moines Register did a little piece on Matthew this week and talked about the benefit motorcycle ride that is happening this weekend.  I am still looking for some bicyclists to start with me at the start.  I still have not mapped out a route, but we can figure that out that morning.  I am looking forward to the event.

This movie is starting to make this whole thing real.  I am getting very anxious to get out there and do this thing.  There are only a few weeks left.  Thanks to everyone for supporting Team in Training.  It is a great organization and I plan to continue this in the future with various events.  

Bone Marrow Donor

It has been a while since I have posted anything.  The main reason I am posting is because I received some good news the other day.  In July at our golf tournament, we had Nancy Webb come and register people for the bone marrow donor registration and I was one of those who registered.  I thought it would be so awesome if I could help someone that needs it.  Well, on Tuesday I got a call from them and I am a possible match for someone.  The first thing I asked was the time frame because I have done all of this training for the marathon and that would be a decision I would have to make if the operation would be in the next month.    But, she assured me that it would be at least 2 months before they would need me, so fortunately I would be able to do both.  They asked me a series of questions and said they would contact me sometime before the middle of November to let me know if I was the chosen donor.  I just thought it was really cool that I could be the one chosen to help someone who is in need.  Someone introduce me once to a quote by John Wooden and it has always stuck with me and I think it is great.  John Wooden said, "You can't live a perfect day without doing something for someone who will never be able to repay you."

As I have mentioned before, I am running in honor of Matthew Barker in October.  Recently, they had a day at Adventureland with a lot of friends and family.  You can follow Matthew at http://www.caringbridge.org/visit/matthewbarker or visit the Facebook Page "A Miracle for Matthew."  It was awesome to read about their trip to Adventureland and see all the pictures and all the support Matthew has.  I also just found out they are going to be doing an article about Matthew and his family in the Des Moines Register since September is Childhood Cancer Awareness Month.  It is apparent that Matthew's family is strong and they continue to stay strong through all of this.  It is also neat to see all of the people coming together to support Matthew and his family. 

Speaking of coming together...on September 29th, they are doing the Matthew Barker Benefit Ride.  They are riding motorcycles to different destinations throughout the day.  Since I don't have a motorcycle, but am a cyclist, I thought it would be cool to get a group together to ride our bikes on part of the route.  I do not yet have a route planned, but we could always just figure that out the day of the event.  Pass the word along to your cycling friends.  The event starts at 11 at the Chicken Coop in Urbandale, which is right down the road from Grimes. 

Sorry, somewhat of a long post today.  We are getting close to the big day.  If anyone is still wanting to support me and the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society, please visit my fundraising page at   http://pages.teamintraining.org/ia/nikesf12/anederhoff

Thanks to everyone and have a great rest of the week. 

Park to Park

To follow my 20 mile run this past week, the weekly long run this week went down to 10 miles.  Instead of that, I decided to sign up for the Park to Park Half Marathon in Waterloo.  I was supposed to run this race last year, but my surgery prevented that from happening.  I have heard a lot of good things about the race, so I wanted to give it a try.  It was a great morning for a race.  It was a little chilly at the start, but warmed up enough during the race to make it almost perfect race weather.  The course was flat.  I am really glad I decided to do this race.  I felt great throughout the whole race and got back to a time that I want to be at.  It gave me a much needed confidence boost.  I have been getting frustrated with some of my runs lately, but yesterday really helped out.

That should be my last race until the big one in October.  It is just a little more than a month away.  This next weekend is a 12 mile run and then the next week is the other 20 mile run.  I am looking forward to doing the rest of the runs with other Team in Training members.  Because of the craziness of summer and other races, I have not been to a group run in quite some time.  The groups runs really help me to push myself, so it should be a good way to round out my training.

Also, when I got back to Des Moines, I had the opportunity to work at the Miracle League Field with the Kiwanis.  I encourage you to check it out.  It is an awesome opportunity for children with special needs to play baseball.  I had to miss most of the Iowa, Iowa State game, but it was well worth it.  It was awesome to see the joy on those kids face when they hit the ball and started down the basepath.  They are also building a new Miracle League Park in Ankeny and break ground on September 26th.  I am hoping to get more involved with the Miracle League.

Also, after some conversation with the guys I did the Hy Vee Tri with, we have decided that we are going to try to get signed up for an Ironman in 2013.  We had some fellow Love Shackers do one in Wisconsin today and they have been our inspiration.  I watched Steve cross the finish line online and am currently watching to see Ellen cross.  I am very proud of my teammates. They have worked really hard for this day.  I am looking forward to start my training for that after my marathon.

Thanks to everyone following my blog.  Keep up the prayers for the ones who need it.

 Make this coming week a great one.

Hy Vee Triathlon

Well, I survived the Hy Vee Triathlon.  There were 3 of us Love Shack teammates participating and another teammate spectating.  We started the day at about 4:30 and headed down to Gray's Lake to set up our transition area.  Trying to park the car was crazy, so we hopped out and started walking and Lyle took the car to park it.  After we got the transition all set up, we had to wait a little for our swim to start.  This gave us a chance to watch some of the elite athletes take off.  We got into the water and the 1500 meter swim for me was a struggle to put it very mildly.  I am not a strong swimmer and my swimming training was very very limited.  It got to the point where I was just swimming kayak to kayak so I could rest.  I had one of the slowest swim times of the day, but I got through it.

When I got out of the water, I had a little trouble getting to the transition area because the swim took a lot out of me.  Once I got on my bike for the 25 mile ride I felt great.  The bike portion is by far my strongest leg of the triathlon.  The bike course was pretty fast.  It was fairly flat and didn't have challenging hills.  This gave me a chance to regain my strength a little bit to prepare for the run.

Once I got off the bike it was time for the 6.2 mile run.  I started out a little slower than my normal pace in hopes that I could pick it up towards the end.  That really didn't happen.  I was pretty slow the whole run.  The run course was not bad, but I was just a little tired from the swim and bike.  I did pick it up towards the end.  It was awesome when you get close to the finish line and you step on the blue carpet and see all the people watching.  One awesome thing was when I saw a fellow Grimes Chamber member and he yelled my name.  That really helped me to push it to the finish.  Then right after that they announced my name on the loudspeaker and that really gets you going.  So, I finished strong and I almost fell over after I crossed the line, but it felt great.

Overall, it was a very humbling, but awesome experience.  I have decided that after I get done with my marathon in October, I will probably start doing more triathlons.  I really enjoy them and it gives you a variety of training, so you aren't just running all the time.

Now, I am about a month and half away from my marathon.  Yesterday gave me a little motivation to start training a little harder.  I am really looking forward to continuing my training and enjoying the 26.2 mile "party" to celebrate my training being over.  Thanks again to everyone has supported me so far and continue to support me in my efforts with Team in Training.  

I want to thank my fellow teammates for being there for my support.  It's awesome to have those people with you to keep you going and it makes it a lot more fun.