Funny Advice

Funny last week advice for those running Boston from my fellow DF teammate:

www.twentysixpointtoomanymiles.blogspot.com

Manami sails through surgery

Manami did great with her surgery and is doing wonderful with her recovery. She is home and following her doctor's advice. Everyday she gets out for a walk. She has done 9 miles in total since she has come home and is averaging 2.5 to 3.5 miles a day. Walking is clearly helping her recovery. Thank you for your wishes for a speedy recovery....clearly they are working.

With only 6 days to go, I am pleased to say that even with injuries, I'm going to give it my best shot and run on Monday. My piriformis muscle is still strained and tightens up my hamstring on long runs, but I think I will be able to run with the pain on Marathon Monday. I won't be breaking any records, but I'm hopeful to finish.

I'd like to thank the following people who have donated to the Claudia Barrs Program at Dana Farber: Carolann Buchanan, Jan DeFelice, fellow teammate, Doug Hart, Cara Hafferty, and Angela Florentino. Your support with this endeavour has been a blessing.

Ouch!

Yesterday I started my long run out of BC. We ran the course backwards out for 10-11 miles and then the plan was to turn around and head back up the hills. I started out with fellow DMFC teammate Kathy. We we cruising along and I felt good. A little slow but no worries. We hit the water stops and fueled up. I felt OK, my energy level was good so I decided to go 6 minutes beyond 10 to turn around. That would give me 21 miles. My legs were very tight but I knew it would be mostly downhill. I headed back to the pit stop and decided to changed my plan to 4 minutes running one minute walking to see if the tightness would pass. It didn't. With each mile it got worse. I managed to get to mile 14 and was looking for our coach. He wasn't at that water stop. I was feeling really uncomfortable but I didn't think I would do any damage so I would try for three more miles. Going down hill was bad and the pain in my butt traveled down to the back of my leg. By the time we crossed 128 and headed to the next water stop I knew that it wasn't passing, it was getting worse with each mile. No coach at the next water stop so I asked the kind volunteer to drive me back to BC. I had gone about 16 to 17 miles I bailed on my run.....I feel defeated but anxious to fix what is wrong so I'll be ready on April 19th. Should I try for 20 this week? Should I ice or use heat.....any words of wisdom would be greatly appreciated.

Broad Institute Motivational Wall

Stop by and write words of motivation to get me to the finish line! The wall is to the left of the 4th floor elevators in 7 Cambridge Center. I have 3 messages all ready!

My fundraising is going really well. I'd like to thank the following people, Jadwiga Grabarek, Rachel Cicconi, Janice Krantz, John Duggan of Carlysle Engineering, Michael Benson, and Mary McQuillian. I have surpassed my goal of 6K and now have increased my goal to 7K......with your help and support we will assist the Dana Farber Researchers in finding new and better treatments to those suffering from cancer. Click the link on the right to donate.

Long run on Heartbreak

Well, it was a very crazy week. A flooded basement, search for a pump and getting my required training in. I managed all of it and I'd have to give myself an A for effort. While the basement clean-up continues, my training was decent. I didn't log the required miles in running, but due to the fantastic weather, I got out with Carolann for 2 three mile walks along the river and a 7 mile run which Anita joined in for the last 3 miles. With the time change, I could do 2 runs after work. I reached a total of 41 miles this week. Yesterday's long run of 18 miles was picture perfect. The weather was warm and my body really responded. I ran in 3 hours and 40 minutes. I had 2 bathroom breaks and hung out at 6 of the waters stops to refuel. AmyJo, who has run for DF many times was with me on the first six and then at 9 I ran with Debbie, a first timer to the finish. Each time I train on the Hearbreak Hills, I feel they are less intimidating. My recovery went better than expected (must have been the protein smoothly I treated myself to after the long run) and later in the day I could walk down the stairs with out too much discomfort. I'm looking forward to my 20 mile run next Saturday instead of dreading it. I now feel confident that I won't let you all down and I'll be able to cross the finish line on Boylston come April 19th!

Humble Run

My long run this past weekend was humbling. I ran very slow and it was difficult to do the 16 miles. I wanted to quit at the first water stop and head back to the gym to finish my workout, but I knew that wouldn't happen. I would end up heading straight to my car and then couch. I battled most of the time between the angel and the devil. Should I quit? Keep going? If you could be in my brain I'm sure you would find it amusinhg. Anyway it did past the time and before long I was on my way back to the gym. The course was challenging and my legs just didn't want to cooperate, but, I did them...all sixteen. The last three miles were a combination of walking and shuffling.
I got back in the groove on Monday and did my Yasso workout (3 sets 800 meters at race pace for a total of 4 miles) and my last chance workout at FitCorp. Yesterday a nice easy run after work.
Today I'm going to go for 8 hilly miles today. I hope my legs cooperate!

In Memory Program

Here I am with the McCall family at Maggianos on Feb. 17th at the Dana Farber Marathon Challange In Memory Program Dinner.

I would like to thank the following people who have recently joined my journey to the finish line: my brother in law Larry and Victor Belanger. Thank you

Personal Record at the Hyannis Half

Well, I ran the race of my life at the Hyannis Half Marathon on Sunday. I had a personal record that beat my half Marathon Time 5 years ago. Not bad for an old lady. I actually had a little in the tank for a quarter mile sprint to the finish. Coach Jack would be proud. The weather was perfect virtually no wind for the first 11 miles. A lot of my DF teammates ran the race and also had PR. Hama and Manami actually missed my finish. They were there but they usually have a lot more time to see me cross the finish line as I am usually doing the "I'm tired so I shuffle across the finish line" but not this time. I had virtually no aches or pains from this run. My training must be paying off. I'm looking forward to the Quincy half Marathon in 3 weeks. This is my home turf so I'm hopeful for a good race.
I took Monday off from running and yesterday I ran from the Broad down to JKF and back. 8 miles. Another great run the only problem was on the return I had to run into the wind and was slower on the run back. I'm not sure where I found this new speed but I'm going to ride it out for all that it is worth. Typically I run 11 minute miles but currently I'm around 10:20 a mile on the long runs. Yasso workouts (speed work) is starting to payoff.
On the donation front it has been a wonderful week. I'm over 5K. I had donations from my fellow Broadies: Tara MacCumascaigh, Haley Bridger, Brenda Ellsworth, Justin Silva, Brian Connolly, Joe O'Brien, Jacob Jaffe, Rosemarie Circeo, Dan Lagres, coach John Rinn, and my boss David Erlandson who has supported this endeavor on so many fronts. Vendors: Claudia Russo of Workplace Resources, Richard Primrose of Palladian, Kathryn Johnson of Triumvirate, and Greg Lucas of CBRE. My auntie Mary and uncle Dick Buckley, my sister Bethany and family and my Dad rounded off this weeks donations. I am thankful for your support.

Update

Dear Friends,
The last couple of weeks have been blessed with good running weather. I am currently running over 30 miles a week and my longest run this season has been about 15.5 miles. That long run took place last Sunday on the Boston Marathon Course. It is a lot easier to run up those hills with the wind at your back.....EVERYONE wish for mother nature to bring us DF runners a tailwind this year. I need all the help I can get to make it 26.2 miles. I think I'm right on schedule to be running 20 miles by the end of March which will have me well prepared to go the distance. I have been injury free and try to run 4 days a week and cross train one other day. Stresses of being a working mom in a new position/environment at work, having a child who needs surgery, running a household, making a sincere effort to be good and do good and everyday stresses have impacted my running . I'm a little slower this year but as I face these challenges and try to resolve them, the running seems to get easier and I'm hopeful that March will bring warmer weather and cheerful long runs.

Due to a very generous donation today I'm so happy to report that my fundraising efforts are over 4K! Thank you everyone....I'm well on my way to reaching 6K. Thank you fellow broadies Marie Gasbarro, Dee Dalrymple and Stephen Nicholson, my brother Brett and wife Lori (AKA PB& J), Dana Gallup of Gallup Landscape, Sam Graves, Sr of ABC Moving services and Mike Dunn of UGL-UNICCO. Your generous support make the miles worth it. Thank you!


There are so many wonderful people to thank...the volunteers at the weekly long runs, colleagues and friends at the Broad Institute, vendors, my Dad, sisters, brothers, nieces and nephews, aunts, uncles, friends, my massage therapist, and most of all my husband and daughter. They allow me to do this. They support my running and without that support I could not do this.

Running in Memory of Kyle McCall

I am honored to have been chosen to participate in the Dana Farber In Memory Program. I will run the Boston Marathon in memory of Kyle McCall who was diagnosed with Osteosarcoma at the very young age of fourteen and lost his battle at age twenty one.

Since I got the email saying I was chosen for this program, I was a little anxious. What could I possibly say to parents who lost their child? As a mother I could not imagine any words that would comfort me if I lost my daughter. Following my long run of 14 miles I met Kyle's mom Susan at Starbucks. She talked about Kyle's life, his battle with cancer and his never ending resolve to do good and be good. His battle with osteosarcoma lasted over 7 years. Even at the end when there was nothing more that could be done, Kyle chose to participate in an experimental treatment. He knew it was too late for him, but he hoped that the researchers would learn something and it would benefit others. He was kind and full of hope. I will be meeting Susan and her family again next week and will share with you stories of his life.

I am happy to report that there were quite a few donations this past week and my total is over 3K. Tyler Eusden, my endurance mentor and colleague donated. Fellow Broadies Diana and hubby Larry Heise, Anita Caufield (who is gonna run a half marathon with me....stay tuned), LaTasha Harris, Emmi Snyder and Jackie Murphy. Thank you all.

Click the link on the right to donate in Memory of Kyle.

January totals: 130.5 miles

Here I am the first week of January just back from an eight mile run.....my longest at that time. Today, I completed a 14 mile long run! I'm right on schedule!

$2726.20 almost half way to 6K

The donations are coming in! I have many people to thank:
Ursla Guthrie of Advance Elevator
Carol and Martin Souza of Laboratory Specialist
Bob McCallum of Pinnacle Piping
Rob Damian of The Broad Institute
Paul Chicarello of Palladian Security
Ronald Powers of Pasek
Thomas Comeau of Commodore Builders

With out their support, the Dana Farber could not be at the front of discovering better treatments to treat Cancer. Thank you.

Over $1,800. so far

Fundraising update.
Since Christmas it has been pretty slow with donations. I'm pleased to report that my fundraising letters went out to vendors and I'm hopeful that in a week or two this number should jump.

On the training front, I had a long run of 12 miles. I had a strong first 10 miles and then a combination of walk run for the last two. I really think not running enough last week set me back. I was the last one to make it back to the running store. I wasn't upset, I was thrilled to have good health to be able to run 12 miles all in one day and before a lot of people are even getting out of bed. It is not how fast I run, it is that I'm out there doing it......all of it. Putting my passion of running to help make advances in cancer treatments. A quick shout out to Maureen for dragging me out on Friday for 3 miles. It was great after a really busy work week to be out along the Charles. Thank you!

I have been accepted to the Jimmy Fund's in Memory Partner Program. I will run the Boston Marathon in memory of a Jimmy Fund patient. Once I contact the family, I'll be able to fill you in.

Thank you to the volunteers at yesterday's group run. It is challenging to watch the runners and work the pit stops along our route in cold weather. I am grateful for your support. There are many volunteer opportunities for the DFMC group. Please contact me if you would like to help.

There is beauty in movement! Click the link on the right to donate today.

It is official.......

Dear Pamela:

Your entry for the 114th Boston Marathon has been received.

You will be notified of your acceptance by email and first class mail. When you are accepted, your name will be posted in the Boston Marathon section of the B.A.A. website, www.baa.org, under "Entrants."

Please contact the B.A.A. registration office at 508-435-6905 (or send an email to registration@baa.org) with any questions regarding your entry.

We look forward to your participation on race day!

Boston Athletic Association

Faina, Maureen and Jodi donate!!!

I am so thrilled that my fellow Broad colleagues Faina Anufriev, Maureen Donohue and Jodi Greco have joined other Broadies with generous donations to the Dana Farber Claudia Barrs Program for innovative basic cancer research. I could not begin this journey with out the support of family friends and colleagues. It is an honor to run for you! I hope I don't let you down!

About my bet with the EHS guys........I think they gave one to the old lady.....I won. Tyler said he "forgot" about the bet and Mike was just too busy to continue after giving 2 full hours on Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday. I won with only 384 minutes. Last year the three of us were doing 500-600 minutes a week for a 12 week period. It is time for us to step it up. It is also time for me to remind all you blog followers that 100 percent of the money you donate goes directly to research. Make your donation today, just click the link on the right.

May you have a very Happy and Safe New Year!

Terry Hayes Thank you very much

Terry's Christmas donation has me over 1,400. raised to date! Terry has participated in the PanMass Challenge and is well aware of the cause. Thank you Terry for supporting me again this year. I hope next year you will join the team!

Today's long run was by far one of the top ten miserable runs of all time. I went out this morning at 9 and planned on running from Quincy to Milton, around Milton and back home. It was drizzly but the rain was due to stop soon. I was thankful it was really warm out side. Almost all of the runners I passed were in shorts. The route was nice and hilly. Not too much was flat and some of it really steep. At about mile 6 it started to pour. I got drenched. With 5-6 miles to go, I really didn't want to be that wet in the middle of my run. I passed a dead deer that was pulled onto the sidewalk. Poor thing. I guess things could be worse. Fatigue settled in and I was quite miserable. The wind picked up and I started to feel cold. I walked for a minute and then thought the faster I run the quicker I will be home in a hot shower. That may have been my strongest finish yet. I was surprised to find my hands and feet all pruney when I took my shoes off, but thankfully, no blisters!
Stay tuned for the update on my contest with Mike and Tyler........

Another bet with the folks in EHS

We are betting how many minutes we will workout this week. I'm sure I'll get my usual 6 hours in, hopefully 7 but Mike is sure he is gonna win this one......The winner gets a six pack from the losers. With Tyler hitting his trainer and logging some serious minutes on his long rides, I'm going to have to work really hard at the gym to keep up with these guys. It should be interesting........

Larry Brutti ROCKS!

Larry thank you for your donation to the Dana Farber. It is friends like you who make me keep putting one foot in front of the other.
Today I met with fellow Dana Farber runners in Lexington to run 10 miles on the bike path. It was really cold out there but somehow I managed to run a very relaxed 10 miles. 5 miles out and back. The first 5 were mostly downhill and the 5 back were a steady incline. Although I didn't have a negative split (back half faster than the first half) I ran the same time going uphill. I was pleased that I didn't walk and I'm really hopeful that I'll be able to continue my training without injury.
I'm looking forward to going out tomorrow for a short run in the snow after I shovel us out!
Everyone, be safe if you need to drive tonight.

Kathleen Mitchell supports me again!

Kathleen, thank you so much for your generous donation to the Dana Farber. I have been touched by the caring of my colleagues and friends here at the Broad Institute. Thank you.


Happy Birthday Carolann. Hope you enjoyed your day off!


On the training front this has been a decent week. I had a 4 mile run, a 40 minute elliptical work out. I lifted weights and will get a 4 mile run in tonight. I've got my first group long run this Saturday. The team will run out in Lexington so I'm happy to have a new route to try and it will be nice to run with my fellow Dana Farber runners. If all goes according to my plans I will run 18 miles this week and be ready to start increasing my long runs from 10 miles to 12 miles.

Why I run

Many wonder why I run. I had originally been overweight my whole life. As a child and adult, I was anywhere between 40-60 pounds overweight. Following my mom's death ten years ago, at age 35, I began to live a healthy life. I was fueled by my mom's suffering from the cancer treatments, knowing any discomfort I was experiencing was nothing compared to what she endured. Being too large to feel comfortable at a gym, I walked l hour in the morning and 1 hour in the evening. I ate only the foods I could control and avoided anything that one bite would not suffice. 4 months later I was down 40 pounds and able to start my running journey. I joined MIT's gym and began running on a treadmill. I was slow (I'm still slow), but I am out there doing it. Soon I was running 3 miles and more weight came off. I raced in some local 5Ks, did a sprint triathalon and even ran a half marathon with my brother, Danny who was always my idol when it came to fitness. My goal is never to win, but rather to finish. A year after I started my weight loss journey I was down 60 pounds and actively going to the gym 5 days a week. Seeking new ways to challenge my body and mind.

Ten years later, I am older and it is getting harder to keep my weight down, but I firmly believe that if you really want something and you have a clear plan to get it, you can accomplish it! We the Dana Farber Marathon Challenge members run for many reasons. I am running because I don't want to see anyone I love suffer from cancer. With each step and each donation, I know that I'm doing all I can so that you and your loves ones don't suffer as my mom did!

Join me at the finish line! Together we can help find better treatments and a possible cure for cancer.