Running in Mile High City!

This past weekend, I went to Denver to visit one of my favorite classmates from college and grad school.  I have never been to Denver before and have only heard great things about the city.  When I was looking for a new job, many of my friends said to me “If you moved to Denver, I would come visit you!”.  I did not get the same response when I told them that I sent my resume to Louisville, KY!

I was most excited to see the mountains and to try running in altitude.  My ultra running friend Joslynn, simulated altitude running in Boston by breathing in and out through a straw on some of her training runs for the Leadville 50 Miler last year.  Since I bought my ticket 3 days before my flight, there was no time to practice running with a straw!

I did a little research on how to prepare for running in altitude.  Some websites said:

-Hydrate, hydrate, hydrate

-Run less than you would normally at sea level (some website said run 6 miles instead of your planned 10)

-Run slower

-Wear sunscreen (the sun is very strong)

-Wear layers because the weather can change quickly

My friend, Meg, took me hiking the day before my run to get me acclimated to physical activity in altitude.  I felt a little winded on our hike, but it was manageable.  I did not wear my heart rate monitor (thing never worked when I wore it for running!) so I took my pulse manually and it was in the 120s during the hike.  We hiked for about 2 hours and I survived so I was not too worried about my run the next day.

I chose to run the jogging/bike path along Cherry Creek and the Platte River.  It is a fairly flat path so I could adjust to the altitude easier.  The suggested long run for this week was 12-14 miles so I set out to run 12 miles (that follows the “run less” rule, right?).

Cherry Creek in the spring or summer.

I found REI along Cherry Creek and later walked about 3 miles to go check out the store!

I set out trying to run my normal training pace to test the waters, but running 8:45’s felt like running 7:30s, so I slowed down quite a bit (following the “run slower” rule).  My breathing felt more labored than usual and I felt that I needed to put in more effort to run.  I averaged 9:30’s for my 12 mile run and felt quite relieved to have not passed out during the run!  Ha!

Taking a break to catch my breath!

Despite being on a mini vacation, it was important to get my training run done.  When you hear about teammates running in zero degree weather back east and cancer patients fighting for their lives, there was no excuse to skip on a training run.  There will be more training runs until Patriot’s Day, but the real race does not end until there is a cure for cancer.

Total mileage to date: 134.1 miles!

Honor Roll of Donors!  Thank you for donating to my run!  It really means a lot to me and to cancer research.

If you have not donated yet, you can make a tax-deductible donation here: http://www.runDFMC.org/2013/bettyy

-Holly (co-worker)

-Susan (former BOMF HH liason)

-Carolyn (stuy buddy!)

-Anna (Run Club buddy!)

-Mom

-Wayman & Mr. Chin (Mrs. Chin’s family)

-Team G! (running buddies & best marathon spectators ever!)

-Alan (RTB teammate)

-Laura & Chris (running buddy and husband of running buddy =) )

-Irlen (cousin)

-Bridget (BOMF’er!)

-Lori (former co-worker!)

1st DFMC Group Run of 2013!

Post run picture with running buddies, Greg and Andrew.

This past weekend, I went to my first Dana Farber Marathon Challenge group run of 2013.  It was great to see old teammates and meet new ones.  Imagine being in a room surrounded by people who have been affected by cancer and want only one thing: a cure.  It has a very powerful effect and I was reminded of how lucky I am to be healthy and be able to run.

Before the run, I signed Dana Farber posters for Ann, a former teammate’s mother, who is a breast cancer survivor and just got re-diagnosed with breast cancer and for Emma, a teammate’s family friend who is 13 years old and battling cancer.   Throughout the season, we will be signing posters with words of encouragement to all the patient partners at the Jimmy Fund.  Even though I do not know any of these people, I am inspired by their fight against cancer.  It is not an easy one and I have seen it first hand at home during my dad’s fight.

I complain a lot (yes, I am admitting to it!) and I need to put things in perspective.  Life is too short to be spent complaining about nonsense.  Complain less, think about how to make situations better the next time, and be thankful for all that I have.  I hope to work on this as I continue my training with the team.

Thanks to the amazing volunteers who manned the water stops for us and to my amazing teammates for making my run so enjoyable!  I cannot wait to be back for another group run!

Great to see old friends Kerry and Glen!

Total mileage to date: 84.5 miles!

http://www.runDFMC.org/2013/bettyy

New Year. New Training Plan!

Running outdoors in NYC is easy if you live by Central Park, by the FDR, or by the West Side Highway.  I live in the middle of the east and west sides so I travel north to run in Central Park.  Central Park offers a more challenging terrain compared to the flat terrain on the east and west sides of Manhattan.  I tried running up to Central Park after work one day, during rush hour, and it was an absolute nightmare!  The city is just too crowded to accommodate runners on the streets or sidewalks.  So I have resorted to taking the subway up to Central Park after work to get my runs in, but with the sun setting so early these days, it is hard to be motivated to go back outside once I come home from work.

Since I do not run as much as I should during the week, my new plan is to run both Saturday and Sunday.  It has been a long time since I ran back to back days, but this weekend was my second weekend running back to back and it is not as bad as I thought it would be.

While the Dana Farber Team ran on the Boston Marathon course today, I had a mini DFMC group run with fellow teammate, Andrew.  I ran 2 miles to the Central Park to meet him and then we ran over the Queensboro Bridge and a lap of Central Park for a total of 11 miles.  We got in plenty of hills today!

I plan to run with the team next weekend in Boston.  I am excited to see old teammates and meet new ones!

I do not know how long I will be able to keep up back to back runs so I will need to find a new running group so that I have some motivation to get out more during the week.  I tried Niketown and City Sports Running Clubs over the summer, but I feel a strong connection with either group so I am back on the market for a new running group!  The training plan is never set in stone so it may change again sometime this season….  =)

Total mileage to date: 57 miles!

Honor Roll of Donors!  Thank you for donating to my run!  It really means a lot to me and to cancer research.

I have been slacking on my fundraising efforts and need to step it up!!  Hopefully this list will continue to grow each week.  You can make a tax-deductible donation here: http://www.runDFMC.org/2013/bettyy

-Holly (co-worker)

-Susan (former BOMF HH liason)

-Carolyn (stuy buddy!)

A trip to the ER to start the new year….

I had planned to run a New Year’s Day race at 11AM called Commitment Day, but as I was getting ready, I found out that my grandfather was not feeling well.  A quick consult with the family doctor and the decision was made to get him to the hospital.

I had never called 911 before and I was surprised that it went so smoothly.  The operator was very calm, which calmed me down and I was able to give her all the information accurately.  EMT’s came, assessed my grandfather, and then used a special chair to carry him down 3 flights of stairs.  I got to ride in an ambulance for the first time as I accompanied my grandfather to the hospital.

We got to the hospital at 10AM.  A nurse did an EKG, put in an IV, and then we waited FOREVER to be assessed.  When I was sick many years ago, I was in the ER for 15 hours before I was admitted and transferred to the floors.  15 hours!!  After working in the hospital and seeing how things work inside, it baffles me how long everything takes.  This ER was probably busier than usual because NYU’s ER is still closed and Bellevue’s ER is only taking non-critical patients.

In 2006, NBC ran an article about ER wait times and it reported the average wait time across the country was 3 hours and 42 minutes.  I am sure critical patients are seen first and the non-criticals usually wait longer, but a 3+ hour wait for medical attention is ridiculous!!  Hospitals need to address long wait times in the ER because so much time is wasted and people have died waiting to be treated in ER’s.

I waited patiently and did not yell at anyone for the long wait times.  The staff in the ER were very nice to us and they kept apologizing for the wait, but their apologies did not make any of the tests come any faster.  We waited for about 2 hours to be assessed by a Physician’s Assistant, then waited another 2 hours for CT scan, then another hour for an xray.  At 5:30PM, they admitted my grandfather, but he waited until 10:30PM for a bed!  He spent over 12 hours in the ER!

It was not exactly the best start to 2013, but my grandfather is feeling better and I am glad that I was there to call 911.  If you ever need to take anyone to the ER, make sure you bring your phone charger, a book, a bottle of water, and some food.  You will be there all day.  Good Luck!

I hope to stay away from ER’s for the rest of the year!

 

1st Race of 2013!!

My brother and I signed up to run the Emerald Nuts Midnight Run in Central Park to ring in 2013 and it was so much fun!!

They had a dance party and costume contest before the race so my brother took out his Halloween costume, (which did not get much wear this year due to Hurricane Sandy) and went as “Ted” to the race.

Me and Ted on the subway to the race!

It took us a while to get to the race because everyone wanted to take pictures with “Ted” on the street and in the subway.  We got there just in time for the costume contest and “Ted” came in 2nd place!!  He was beat out by a group dressed as the Peanuts gang.  Everyone got the same prize though – a duffel bag full of Emerald Nuts and a 2013 Runners World Calendar!!

Ted on the jumbotron during the costume contest!

At the stroke of midnight, fireworks went off and we set out to run Central Park’s 4 mile loop!  People screamed for “Ted” the entire way.  Some guys were not too happy when we passed them as I heard plenty of “Damnit, a bear is beating me!!”  One random spectator called “Ted” “Frosty the Snowman”!  I laughed the entire way!

It was a great way to kick off the new year!