Elizabeth is a writing mom on the run and was one of two Social Runners from 2012-2013. Originally from Maryland, Elizabeth now runs up and down the hills of Pittsburgh, PA, where things (like rivers) come in threes. She loves triathlons, has published three books and has three sons! She runs her own writing business and finds that a good long run is often the source of her creative ideas. Elizabeth loves being married to a great runner who was a finisher at the 2013 Boston Marathon.
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Runners are used to obstacles. Lately, many of us have been running in freezing (or below freezing) weather. We climb hills, dodge mud puddles, keep an eye out for traffic and use whatever means necessary to avoid getting sick.
A very cute obstacle.
Some of us have cute obstacles, like little children. When my boys were little, they often came along on my runs in a jog stroller. But it’s been so cold up here in Pittsburgh, running moms can’t safely take their children out for a run. So this week I helped a fellow Pittsburgh running mom who is training for her first Credit Union Cherry Blossom Ten Mile Run by watching her young baby while she got in her first virtual training run.
Some of us have not-so-cute obstacles. Ali, the runner we mentioned in our first blog post “Lucky to be Runners,” has already overcome some big injuries. This week she hit some really bad luck and fractured her foot. She has two very small fractures and no bones displaced. She has to wait two weeks to see how things heal. There’s not much I can do to help her with this obstacle except sympathize and suggest my least-favorite upper body and core exercises.
Several years ago, I had almost given up on running completely because of a physical obstacle. But something inside wouldn’t let it go. And the 2011 Credit Union Cherry Blossom Ten Mile Run was my ten-mile victory lap.
You know what I mean, don’t you? As a runner, you’ve overcome some big obstacles of your own. Kids, work, injuries, weather…you’ve been there and done that. So pay it forward! Share your biggest obstacle and how you tackled it and turned it into something that made you tougher.
Elizabeth is a writing mom on the run and logs her miles in Pittsburgh, PA. She was a 2013 Social Runner for the Credit Union Cherry Blossom Ten Mile Run.
New runners and veterans can benefit from running training programs. If this is your first time tackling the full ten mile run or you’re focused on a personal record, whether you live in D.C. or are logging your miles in a distance city, thanks to =PR= and New Balance there ‘s a running training program that will work for you.New runners and veterans can benefit from running training programs. If this is your first time tackling the full ten mile run or you’re focused on a personal record, whether you live in D.C. or are logging your miles in a distance city, thanks to =PR= and New Balance there ‘s a running training program that will work for you.New runners and veterans can benefit from running training programs. If this is your first time tackling the full ten mile run or you’re focused on a personal record, whether you live in D.C. or are logging your miles in a distance city, thanks to =PR= and New Balance there ‘s a running training program that will work for you.
For locals, the In-Person On-Site Training Program begins January 25-26, 2014 at a variety of locations. The $99 registration fee for the standard program also includes great gear and this year a premium option includes the same benefits as the standard program plus a registration to the Credit Union Cherry Blossom Ten Mile Run and a pair of New Balance shoes!
For folks outside of D.C., there is a Virtual Training program that begins January 27, 2014. This program is free, is presented by New Balance, and has been thoughtfully designed by Bill Rodgers and Virtual Training Coach Kirt West.
Running training programs offer so much more than a chance to log miles. One of last year’s social runners, Amanda, used a modified version of the training plan because she was injured. She loved it. Here’s what she had to say:
=PR= Training
As the Cherry Blossom social runner, I have been working with several of the race sponsors to get back on my feet, and one of those has been the =PR= Training program. Participating in this program has given me access to Coach T, who has helped me to adapt the =PR= program to whatever my capabilities have been. Starting on the bike and working my way up, she’s checked in to make sure I’m ok to be running when I am and helped me outline an abbreviated training plan without compromising my progress.
In addition to working with Coach T, participating in the training program has brought both Matt and myself something we hadn’t really experienced before: camaraderie in training. We both tend to prefer running on our own, but out of this process, we ended up making new friends that have celebrated our accomplishments with us (like Matt’s half marathon PR that he promises he’ll write a post about soon) and commiserated over injuries. I have personally loved getting to watch the newer runners experience new personal distance records, and their excitement throughout the training process has continued to provide me with determination to make it to race day, as well.
Amanda’s husband, Matt, was healthy and able to join in on the scheduled training runs. You can read about a sample week of training here.
Let us know if you sign up for one of the programs and how your training is going! Good luck, Runners!
Elizabeth is a writing mom on the run and logs her miles in Pittsburgh, PA. She was a 2013 Social Runner for the Credit Union Cherry Blossom Ten Mile Run.
Will this Pittsburgh runner trade three rivers for cherry blossoms?
The 2014 Credit Union Cherry Blossom Ten Mile lottery goes lives Monday, December 2, 2013 and runs until Friday, December 13, 2013. The lucky ones who are selected for the Ten Mile Run and 5K Run-Walk will get an email or see their names on the website on Tuesday, December 17, 2013.
I’m so thankful I was able to run this race for the first time in 2011. Many other runners feel the same way. Meet Ali Mathis, one of the runners hoping to be chosen in the lottery system. Like most runners, she’s faced challenges and frustrations. But like most runners, she has big dreams and determination. Here’s her story:
“Sometimes I feel like an imposter in the running community. At any given moment, it may be discovered that I am the girl who faked illness to avoid running the mile for the Presidential Academic Fitness Test in gym class. As a preteen, I was not a natural runner or athlete and I felt ashamed when by forced comparisons to my peers through the school mile trials. I was the girl who ran with a limp and was ridiculed by her peers. I was the girl who was lapped. At 35, I am still not a natural runner or athlete. It does not come easily to me. I am still sometimes lapped on the five mile trail I regularly run. But even as I am, my head is held high and I smile because I now know I am lucky to be running.
In 1987, Billy Ocean’s song “When the Going Gets Tough, The Tough Get Going” was at the top of the charts and I was nine years old. That was also the year that I was hit by a car while I was riding my bicycle. I landed on my face and split my chin open requiring 17 stitches. I also broke my right femur bone; that could not be stitched up as easily. I spent 6 weeks hospitalized with my leg in traction, meaning I was flat on my back with my leg suspended in the air. For two months following my hospital release, I was casted up to my hip. I spent my days mostly confined to bed at home, though occasionally I got to take a spin around our small condominium in a wheelchair. A brace and crutches, and relearning how to walk followed for another few months.
There were years of brutal physical therapy that I fought every step of the way. I loathed the little exercise bike that my mother had in our kitchen that she made me ride every night. My doctor told her that “She’ll be fine, but, she’ll never run marathons.” Perhaps that planted a seed in my brain that eventually grew…though at the time I remember thinking that marathons were only for Olympians. In the midst of this we moved to a new house, a new town, where the new kids couldn’t really grasp what I had been through. I was just the new girl with the limp, the one who sucked at the mile.
Today my legs are different lengths and I have scoliosis, probably as a result of the accident, though it is impossible to know. Most who know me as a runner do not know my story until they notice the scars on my leg from where the pin lived. When I began training for my first marathon it had been over 20 years since I broke free from my cast (and during that time I’d run recreationally, a 5K here or there) but, in my mind, I was still bound by its confines. Screw confines. Today, the girl who faked illness to miss the mile is now also the girl who has run 7 marathons and 3 half-marathons in 4 years. She runs 20-30 miles a week, voluntarily. Sometimes when she runs she still fights insecurities or hears the voices of her classmates snickering. She uses that to run farther, faster. Because just like Billy Ocean says: “When the going gets tough, the tough get going.”
Welcome to the official blog of the 2014 Credit Union Cherry Blossom Ten Mile Run. We’re excited to have you as a reader, a runner and possibly a guest blogger.
We love talking running and want to hear from you. Maybe you’re hoping to enter this race for the first time or you’ve been at the starting line many times since 1973. Maybe you’re already planning to make completing the 5K Run/Walk your New Year’s Resolution or you’re excited to bring your little one to the Kids’ 1/2 Mile run. Whatever race is on your list, consider us your online running partners! From gear to goals, mileage to motivation, fartleks to finish lines, we’ll cover it all.
Upcoming Events
The race is five months away and we’re already hard at work. We are accepting applications for the 2014 Social Runners. We need two runners from anywhere in the United States who want to tell the world all about their experiences with the race on Facebook and Twitter. Interested? Apply here!
It’s also time to get your tickets for the Credit Union Cherry Blossom Fall Kickoff Reception on Friday, November 15th from 6:00-9:00 PM at The 201 Bar. Your $15 registration includes a drink ticket, appetizers and – the best part – a raffle entry for a guaranteed entry to the Credit Union Cherry Blossom Ten Mile Run! Get your ticket here.
From the Editors
I’m Elizabeth Pagel-Hogan, one of the editors of this blog, I’m looking forward to learning from so many other runners. This race has a special place in my heart. In 2011, it marked a return to my beloved sport of running after many setbacks. In 2012, I set a personal best for the 10 mile. Last year, I was thrilled to be one of the Social Runners for the 2013 CUCB but injuries forced me to change my goals. Who knows what 2014 will bring?
I invite you to continue the conversation with us on Twitter at @CUCB and with me at @epagelhogan.
