Running pictures AK marathon & Towpath

 Before the race sister silliness

Team Julia

 Team Julia and the back of the shirts

Two beautiful women in my life; my sister and bestest

 Taking pictures during the race (yes, I carried a camera)

 Grandma at mile 1

Running with Dad - Mile 7

 Friends at Mile 9

 (Thanks Kim - Pand I at Mile ~24 - note I stopped taking pictures)

The End - Ak Marathon snapped this as we ran in, my favorite pic

Sometimes it is nice to cheer on family and friends on their runs, so Paul and I headed down to the Towpath Marathon - look at the Fall leaves!

 Dad giving me a high five in the Towpath 10K

 My mother-in-law Sue running her FIRST half-marathon (she started running in her 50s)

Dad's Finish

 Sue's friend Diane in her first half marathon

 Sue's Finish

 Sue's finish from behind

P and her chatting

Akron Marathon Race Report

After an extremely warm week, the weather called for high of 65 and partly sunny for the race.  My whole family and some friends purchased the "I run to stop MS" shirts to run with me during the race (and my mom, grandpa and grandma watching the race).  I felt nervous as always, but I was glad to have my sister, husband and friend to run with me, I knew I could make it with them.

Although this is my third marathon, I knew that my prep was not nearly as on par as other years.  I skipped many weekly runs due to the heat - I just could not get enough energy to force myself out in 85 degrees and high humidity, I literally melt.  My lack of prep combined with my odd races the weeks before, made my nerves jump even more.

Morning of the race went well, saw many of my friends and family and we all got in line with out 'Team Julia - I run to stop MS' shirts.  I felt loved and I always feed off of the energy of the 10,000 runners around me.  The key for me in a marathon is to start out slow.  I always want to get pulled with the crowd, but I have to remind myself - 26.2 miles to go, slow yourself down.  I was hoping to average 12 min/mi this year for a PR of 5 hours, but you know how the best laid plans go...

Mile 1   10.44 (a little fast but mainly flat and easy)

Mile 2   10.57

Mile 3   11.08

Mile 4 & 5 21.33

Mile 6   11.06

Mile 7   11.21

Mile 8   11.30

Mile 9   10.58

Mile 10 13.08 (bathroom break)

Mile 11  12.19

Mile 12  11.31

Mile 13  13.12 (sister started to not feel well - I was still feeling strong at this point and after a pee break I was still hydrated

Mile 14  11.42

Mile 15  11.29

Mile 16  13.20  (at this point my sister was feeling really bad and asked me to go without her and Paul and I went on alone)

Mile 17  11.33

Mile 18  12.24

Mile 19  16.17 (felt really dehydrated and went to use the restroom, uh oh, somehow made a mistake with my drinking or body was not absorbing what I took in)

Mile 20  13.23  (slowing down, did not feel right and could not get a gel in without feeling like I was going to throw up - luckily my friend's Kim and Andy came out to cheer me on and get me moving for the next couple of miles.)

Mile 21 12.36 (moved to run 1 walk 1 - was still moving at a good clip but could tell body was not feeling right)

Mile 22 14.50 (took in electrolytes again, thought I was going to up chuck, sun came out and HR jumped up and I was sweating much more profusely.  I was joined on the trek)

Mile 23 16.38  (could not run without stomach feeling horrid)

Mile 24 18.52  (walking, cramps, stomach problems and Paul was so supportive, was not sure I was going to make it)

Mile 25 20.49  (pissed, now the downhills were keeping me slow, I kept having to stop and stretch and leaned on Paul A LOT)

Mile 26 & .2  17.10 (I tried to jog some and at least jogged into the stadium)

Finish Time: 5:42:42

Not a PR but not my worst race either.  I did not have nutrition dialed in and I did not train to my best ability but I finished.  It was a very emotional finish, somehow all of the feelings of the past year came flooding back and as I took the step over the finish line, I thought about how this could be my last one and that many things are just unknown with this disease.  I was so glad that I came around from from my low energy and on and off symptoms (even at the beginning of summer) to actually finishing the marathon.  I was never once confident that it was going to just happen, but it did.  Wow.  So I have a lot of amazing pictures (I caried a camera the whole way and from good friends - thanks Kim) and I will post a blog with those pictures soon.

Thank you to everyone who supported me through this!

I am not dead, just busy

I apologize for not posting about the marathon yet - I will this weekend.  I finished but my legs blew out at mile 22 and I did not get my nutrition right this year.  BUT - I finished my first marathon after my MS diagnosis.  I will write more details this weekend.

Air Force 10K

As you can see I have a September stretch of races that I do almost every year.  This one is part of the Air Force Marathon and works out in my taper - plus my father was an Air Force F-15 fighter pilot, my brother-in-law is a 2nd Lieutenant - and the Air Force has special meaning to us all.  This year my father-in-law ran the entire marathon, my father the half-marathon, my mother-in-law the 10K; so it was (as always) a family affair.  We had to get to the base (Wright- Patterson) early because with 12,000 runners entering 3 gates, it takes a while to get in.  I was up at 4:30 am and we parked at 6:30.  The marathon and 10K both begin on the same course at 7:15 am, with the half-marathon falling later on a different course at 8:30 am.


This years logistics were a bit lacking; parking took longer (we had to walk a mile in pitch black over a pretty bumpy ground), there were not enough port-o-pots and I knew I was making mistake by not getting to use the rest room before the race started.  Oh well, after a C-3 fly by and a beautiful rendition of the National Anthem the marathoners and 10Kers were off.  

The first half of a mile is on old runway and is bone flat, but that just allows enough warm up before a 250 ft climb in less than a 1/4 mi.  My first mile was a little too fast at 8:48 but my heart rate was a steady 170.  The only problem was that I knew that I would have to stop at a port-o-pot (GI issues).  Dang, about 50 other runners had the same idea and I stood there as the time clicked by.  After the rest room and a little bit of a slow run to get back into it, I hit mile 2 at 14:52.  Err, I knew I was at a great race weight and I had a PR in me, so I told myself to get back in the groove over the slight up and down 3rd mile and finished it in 10:17.  After that I found my legs finally feeling full power and I told myself I could pick up the pace to try to get at least even with my previous 10Ks.  The downhill fourth mile passed at 8:19.  I knew I could not hold that fast but I knew I could try and be around 9:00 for the last two pancake flat miles.  Mile 5 passed at 9:09 and mile 6 passed at 9:10.  I finished the 10K at 1:02:32.  Not a PR for the course, but if you minus the bathroom mile, I was flying (for me).


My fear is that I have had issues at my past two races - side stitch and GI issues - and I am a bit worried about the upcoming marathon.  To top it off I have had flu-like symptoms the past two days (why me).  I know that you never can tell what happens with a race but I am not having a good taper.  :(  


The good news is that I have a few days to rest up, I have my sister, husband & friend from Georgia (Eric) coming to run the marathon with me and help me get through this.  I just ask that the stars align and that at least the race passes without many issues.

If you are coming out this weekend to cheer we will be wearing running banana Team Julia shirts with this design.

9 mi Potato Stomp Race Report

One of my favorite races of the entire year.  This grassroots race is at a great price ($12), great time in the year, pretty scenery, challenging hills, lots o' prizes and "has the friendliest spectators around".  In fact two years ago I won the main raffle prize -  a pocket bike.

I was not nearly as scared or nervous as my half marathon a few weeks ago.  The weather was brisk (good for me), sunny and I had already completed a half...no biggie.  I was joined by a lot of the ladies from work.  1 student, 2 graduate assistants, aquatics manager and me - GREAT turn out.  4 of us are all around the same speed, so there was a healthy competition going as well.  I wanted to 'push' it a little harder this year and having some ladies to keep in mind was a good choice.

The race started in the potato stomp traditional manner with all of us running over potato chips.  The first 1.5 miles are down hill and I found myself cruising 9:40(1), 8:50 (2).  The next 2 rolling miles were 9:45(3) & 9:50 (4).  All of a sudden I got a side cramp, not just a little annoying one, but a take- you- down side cramp.  I was frustrated as all of my girls passed me, but I did not stop for long.  I managed to finish out the race at 1:31:20, which is not bad - but I would have been around 1:26 if I could have stayed with my pace.

This weekend is the Air Force 10K followed by the Akron Marathon in two weeks.  Phew, I hope that the weather stays cool!

Buckeye Half Marathon

To be honest - I was nervous.  For some reason (even though I have already run 18 miles for training), this race was a benchmark.  Something to see if this whole MS year of crazy was going to keep me from doing the marathon.  Something that has not happened in a year....a half marathon race.

I have had a down and up summer so far.  As stated before, June was filled with a vertigo problem that almost made me give up on training.  I was feeling tired and dizzy and ready to throw in the towel for training and then July hit.  All of a sudden I was able to run 10, 12 ,13, 14 miles....wait a second, my body was starting to respond.  August has even been better - I found myself doing even an 18 mi run.  :)

So here I was Sunday morning, a nice cool morning which I always appreciate, ready to start a half marathon.  The feeling that I had come a far way was just emotional and the feeling that I was lucky to be standing here made my heart race.  I was ready to accomplish something that once was not even a concern to me - it is just a half.

Once again the race was a family and friend affair.  Brandon and Mel were there, as well as Melissa & Diane from work.  My father, my father-in -law, my mother-in-law and some other folks that I have gotten to know over time.  Kim even came out to support us and take pictures.

The race started at 8:00 am and it was probably 60 degrees and nice at that time.  It was a large group this year - somewhere around 1,000 participants and we all walked the 1/4 mile to the start.  Diane from work was interested in running with me, since I was CLAIMING that I was going to use this as a training run, keeping my heart rate at 60 - 70% and staying somewhere between 11 min - 12 min/mile.  Well I did not expect to feel good.

The first mile was a quick one, Diane looked at me with her Garmin and said you know we are running a 9:40/ mi pace.  I smiled and said, let's see what happens.  I knew that I could not maintain that rate once the heat set in, so I thought I should keep myself at a little harder pace to begin with, plus for some reason, I was not dying.  Heart rate was more around 70 - 80%, but it is a race.  Mile 1 - 6 my time was 1 hr and 3 min.  I was smokin' (well for me this year anyway).  I felt good and was ready for the second lap.

For the second lap, it did get warmer, my paced slowed down to a more 11:00 min/mile pace but I was still running.  Not at one point in the race did I feel bad.  I finished with a time of 2:18:34 for an avg of 10:35/mi.  

No this is not a PR, yes I am happy.  Today marked a goal obtained...what will tomorrow bring?

BTW, you still can give money on my behalf to Run MS.  My sister is running the AK marathon for MS and me.  Donate here!

Diet Update 2 - THE POSITIVES

When I started to research about changing my diet I found some personal accounts of people who exclaimed that with in one week they started to feel changes; more energy and a clear head.  I cannot say that this was the case for me, but over the past 6 months I have seen many improvements.  I also have found that I was not craving the foods that I gave up nearly as much as I had thought I would.  I guess for me, the health of my body was a much stronger pull than food.

More Energy - One of the things that has crept up on me in the past months is more energy.  When I had my first attack I found myself needing somewhere between 10 - 12 hours of sleep each evening and even with the sleep I found myself exhausted every morning.  I felt as if all that I did was sleep and work.  If I had any extra time during the day, I would take naps to keep me awake.  I am not sure when it happened but at some point I found myself with more energy.  Currently, I get around 8 hours of sleep and even less some nights without feeling completely spent.  I also have more energy for extracurricular like exercise and hanging with friends, which is a nice change from this past winter.

Those who have been around me have noticed as well, I have crept out of the zombie land for the time being. Last week I ran 13 miles and I felt a little tired, but my body responded better than I would have thought.  I am not saying every day is perfect, but let's say I have more good days than bad.

Impulse Control & Planning - I would not say that I would over eat a lot, but I know that last summer working out 5-6 times a week- that many times we would go out to eat.  At least once a week at a bar with some fried foods and beer. I am sure that I was not putting the best foods into me.

With this diet I have to plan out food and meals for everything.  When I go on a weekend conference for work.  When I go out for the day.  When I go on vacation.  Lunch (and dinner) for work.  Every time I need a snack.  Every time I am hungry.  I also have to make sure that I have food (just in case).  There is no getting hungry.

Currently I eat breakfast (usually GF/DF cereal and rice mik) at 6 am, fruit at 8 am, almonds or walnuts at 10 am, lunch at noon - 1(lots of veggies; salad with turkey, fruit, carrots), handful of GF pretzels or similar at 3-4 pm and dinner at 7 pm (something different each day - the summer has been a lot of grilling!).  I eat all day, but really it equals less saturated fat, a lot of fruits,veggies, nuts and little to no refined sugar (most days).

I also avoid most eating out times.  I cannot get wings and pizza, I cannot drink beer (drink much really), I cannot stuff myself at the family outings or vacations - I have specific GF/DF stuff (my family has been great to make stuff I can eat). I am eating like I should have years ago.

Weight Loss -This really was a tertiary effect.  I was never planning on weight loss, I thought it might happen but it was not a focus.  In fact in Early May I weighed the same as in early February, if in 3 months I had not lost anything I probably wouldn't.  So I quit paying attention.

All of a sudden my clothes were fitting a lot looser and I was getting comments about whether I had lost weight.  I would not consider myself a giant girl but I was always 'curvy' as they say.  I finally weighed myself and 10 lbs had dropped off since May.  I say dropped off because last year I was working out WAAAAY more.  I spent the year trail running, training for marathons, swimming, road biking, mountain biking, on a two week backpacking trip and this year there were months that I was lucky I put in 30 miles of anything.  I am still only hitting maybe 3 - 4 workouts a week.

I knew this was true, as an exercise science major they always said diet was much more important than exercise for losing weight.  Study after study touting those set up on a strictly a diet change compared with those only on a exercise regimen, continuously lost more weight.  Of course the combination of both is the best.  

No fuzz head - I still have my memory relapses where I cannot spit out what I need to say.  I now think this is directly related to the MS but more on that some other time.  I have noticed a fog that was with me has lifted.  I can only describe it like those days that your sinuses cause the head pressure and you feel like you cannot think clearly.  Now I am a little more alert, focused at the job in hand.  That makes me feel a lot more confident in my job and tasks that I take on.

Really tasting things - Yes this sounds cliche, but I think that I found appreciation of things that sometimes were rushed.  I always have had a love of food, a mother who should have been a chef (self taught) taught me the appreciation of food from all over the world.  Being an Air Force Brat, we had the chance to travel and appreciate food from all over.  In my adult life time got in the way.  Paul is a good cook, but we had our standing meals that were repeated every other if not every week, because we were both tired from working all day.

Everything changed when I decided to do this.  My mother who once cooked delicious home-made macaroni and cheese, is now baking breads and cookies that I can eat.  Paul will spend a good hour or two prepping meals that simmer for hours.  We are using more herbs to flavor than we ever had; the sweet smell of cardamon, cloves, cinnamon from the Indian dishes, to the fresh sage, shallot and parsley potatoes that sit as a side to a fresh bison steak and grilled asparagus.


I want to be clear, I am lucky.  The supportive friends and family who have accommodated to my diet are amazing.  I have been blessed by many.  Paul who has just been taking this as challenge to keep me from craving anything I once had.   My mom who bakes for hours or cooks to bring me over a hamburger buns so that I can participate in the cook out.  My aunt and cousin who are experimenting and making dishes for the family get together.  My friends who will go to PF Chang's (for their GF/DF options), Vegiterranean (Vegan/GF), Altieri's (GF Fried chicken) over and over to just go out with me.  I am so loved.

I also want to be careful as to say this is curing me.  I do not know.  I will not know, really.  I am 9 months into a diagnosis that hit me like a brick wall.  I am still reeling and trying to make sense of everything.  I read blogs about those who have had a rough time of MS, those who are still climbing mountains with MS, and a lot that are in between.  In someway this diet is a bit of control , even if control is just an illusion, but in someways isn't all control an illusion?

Control is an Illusion

Attempting to control external events
will never keep us safe.
Control is an Illusion.
Whatever we try to control,
we separate from ourselves.
Whatever we try to fix,
we ruin.
Life is sacred,
and flows exactly as it should
We return to our breathing.
It knows exactly what to do,
rising and falling without conscious control.
In the same way
We sometimes have excess
and sometimes lack.
We sometimes assert ourselves
and sometimes hold back.
We sometimes succeed
and sometimes fail completely.
Our practice is to see all of this
without taking it seriously.

-Lao Tzu