I Won Another Running Related Raffle (YAY)

Garmin Forerunner
245 Music

This is so exciting. I have loved my Fossil Sport but was looking for a watch with better battery life since the current watch seems to drain really fast when I'm using the GPS. Enter, Garmin. Most of the running stores sell the Garmin watches and I've seen their booths over the years at expos.

I started doing research because I thought maybe around Black Friday there would be a good enough deal to purchase a new watch. So what happened? I won a Garmin Forerunner 245 Music watch. The problem? It's missing a key feature I currently use daily with my Fossil watch, payments. That's right, I'm one of those people that flip my wrist over to pay instead of taking out a credit card.

Garmin Venu 2S

I reached out to Garmin directly but even though it shipped from them I couldn't exchange it because it was a promotional purchase. Now comes the what will I do question since I really want a watch with a credit card feature. I put the Garmin Forerunner 245 Music up on Facebook's Marketplace for $25 below retail. Once it sells (I hope), I'm going to buy the Garmin Venu 2S which has all the features of the Forerunner plus the credit card and a better battery life. 

I did put on the Forerunner's post that I was willing to consider any reasonable offer and I set a minimum offer on the page. If someone submits an offer before that number it will automatically reject it, but I feel that something will come up eventually. I really want the Venu 2S and was planning to buy it anyway before the contest. Wish me luck.

The Start of NYC Souvenirs

Feetures NYC

 Alright. I might be crazy. I just spent $30 on two pairs of socks. Oh come on, you'd buy these too if you saw them. I currently wear Feetures socks when I run after they were originally recommended by Philadelphia Runner. I just normally buy the generic/solid-colored socks in the store and not special ones from the website. 

When I learned they had Boston and Chicago socks, I started stalking the website until they came out with the no-shows. I then emailed and found out the mini-crew socks were coming in a few days. At that point, I created an account and then shared the Feetures referral link on tons of NYC Marathon pages. I got over nine referrals but learned after that you can't combine the $10 vouchers so I wasn't able to actually get free socks. Instead, I got $10 off one purchase and still have nine more $10 vouchers.

I can't wait for these to arrive and hopefully, if I get at least one trial run in with them before November 7th I can wear them for the marathon. Otherwise, I'll wear my other Feetures which are just gray for the marathon and save these for the next event.

Reflections After Broad Street

A few years ago before I started this journey I could barely walk a mile. After losing some initial weight I started walking more and then downloaded a couch to 5K app. Completely skipping the 5K though, I went directly to the Broad Street Run which is 10 miles. At that point, I was hooked and started signing up for more local races.

At the start line.

If you look at my Strava stats, my typical run is anywhere from a 15 to 17 minute pace. So imagine my surprise yesterday when I crossed the finish line of Broad Street to see 14:15 as my pace. I'm not sure what made me move faster yesterday than normal and I know that it's still slow compared to many other people. However it doesn't bother me when other people pass me because at least I'm going and that was the biggest challenge.

When I would walk into a gym or try to go to a class I was so out of shape that I felt completely out of place with all of those buff and fit people. It's a vicious cycle of self-sabotaging because I would never go to the classes because I didn't want to feel out of place. Finding an app on the phone that allowed me to have guidance while not actually being around people made it easier to get started because I would just walk on trails around my neighborhood.

Team DetermiNation

Even now I have joined some Facebook groups for local meetup running but I always feel out of place because they're all doing 8 minute miles or faster. However I have also found that they are really encouraging and I might not run with them but I still start with them and end with them which is nice to have a group.

When I decided to train for a marathon and prove to myself how far I've come I was worried about going at it alone because obviously 26.2 miles is a lot longer than anything I've ever done. The online communities have been amazing and while I was sometimes embarrassed to ask questions I realized that that commodity is what makes it so amazing because people are always willing to answer the questions or guide you to someone who knows the right answer. 

At the finish line.

I considered yesterday's Broad Street to be a training run for the marathon since it was the first in-person run I've done in 2 years and it would also remind me of how the the waves work, the water stations are positioned, and the crowds in general. The crowds yesterday were much smaller than previous years because the city told people not to go out in cheer for the racers. However even without the crowds of fans there were still plenty of people cheering you on. As I got near the finish line, you could see the faster runners who would already finish and were leaving cheering on the people still coming across the line.

I'm really excited for New York and while I'm scared I also know that even if I'm the last person to cross that finish line I am going to cross it. And even if it's already dark out and the roads were reopened there will be people at the finish line to cheer on every last runner.

Not Letting the Pain Stop Me and Gear Updates

Last week I reached 16 miles and was very sore after. But I took some ibuprofen and went about the next day. The day after was even worse and it was painful to walk but the following day I felt all right. 

Recap

• Saturday = 16 miles
• Sunday = sore
• Monday = barely walking
• Tuesday = better
• Wednesday = did 2 miles
• Thursday = rest
• Friday = rest
• Saturday (yesterday) = 20 miles

Yesterday, I reached 20 miles. When I got home my knee was swollen to the size of a tennis ball but I took ibuprofen and rested with ice. There's no swelling today but my knee is still sore. I guess we'll see what tomorrow brings.

I've had knee and back problems for a long time but running this marathon has been a goal to prove to myself how far I've come. 

Even with the constant pain I've learned to deal with it and fight past it. I also know how to read my body and slow down when necessary. This is part of the reason why I've never run straight without interval walking. When I first started to go further distances I could tell based on the pain when I needed to stop but learning to using intervals helped me minimize that same pain so that I could go further. 

When I was training for my first Broad Street run I was also in physical therapy for my back and they helped me determine the right intervals to prevent further injury. 

my two belts

One thing I found worked better than expected during the 20 mile run was my belts. Yes, belts as in plural. I purchased a new belt on Amazon because I know I will not be able to use my hydration pack during the marathon because of gear restrictions. The problem is once I put the nutrition gels in the belt I didn't have any room left for my phone even though this belt was listed as one of the larger ones with water bottles. So I ended up putting the hydration belt on my back and then a regular fanny pack on the front. The fanny pack held my phone, charger, inhaler, and ID.

Having the running belt on my back actually worked out really well because it provided support to the part of my back that usually starts to hurt first. Meanwhile the water bottles on both sides balance each other out and I didn't even feel like I was wearing it. The fanny pack on the front is what I have already used previously during runs when I knew water would be available every few miles. Therefore, I was already comfortable with the fanny pack in front. For the marathon, they recommend bringing your own water bottles because even though there will be water stations there will not be as many as in previous years. This was another reason I wanted a belt that had water bottles.

The only issue I found with wearing two belts was it was harder to stop at a bathroom because I had to take the belts off to go. I think the new belt was the real issue because I couldn't shift it easily since it has rubber dots on the back to prevent slipping.