2016 Cleveland Marathon News & Quick Race Report

It was an interesting week for me. Some ups and downs. So let's start with the good news shall we?

I am officially back as a Cleveland Marathon ambassador again for 2016! This is great news as I love this race and the friends that I made last year that were also ambassadors. The race, which takes place on 5/15/16 is a month after the Boston Marathon so I figured why not run the full again. New this year for the adventurous folks there is a new Challenge Series where you can run multiple races such as the 8K and full marathon or 8K and half marathon, etc. I thought about doing this but with running Boston and prepping for a half ironman race in June I decided to stick with the solo 26.2. Watch my blog and social media posts throughout the season for updates on the race, meet ups and a chance to win a free race entry to the distance of your choice!

Hard earned AG Turkey Trophy

Now the not so good news. Since Beach 2 Battleship I have struggled to get my running mojo back due to "dead leg" syndrome. Finally this week I had a couple of decent paced runs and my husband and I signed up to run a local race called the Twinsburg Turkey Trot 5 miler. It's a fun little race that combines some road and trail running into one tough little race. The last time I ran it in 2013 I had a good day and won the female race in 36 and change. This time was not as fortuitous for me.

My respiratory allergies had flared up last week and I struggled with my breathing. I knew this going into the race Saturday but decided to take my albuterol inhaler and chance it anyways. Things started out pretty well for the first couple of miles then around the 2-2.5 mile mark I had a tough time getting in oxygen and had to stop and walk to get my breathe back. This happened a few times during the race so I quickly went from 2nd place down and ended up finishing in 6th with a time of 39:31 (7:54 pace). So, it's not the day I wanted to have but I am glad I hung in there and finished the race and managed to place 2nd in my AG. Steve ended up having a great race and took 3rd male with his time of 33 mins. I was happy that at least one of us had a great day!

I'm hoping my allergies clear up and my Turkey Day 5K race goes a little smoother! I am now at the point where seeing an allergist has become necessary because it's interfering with my training, racing and general enjoyment of life at times. Not cool, right?! So, I will be doing a cleanse following Thanksgiving and then experimenting with a vegan diet to see if that helps. I will also be seeing an allergist and may even try some accupuncture at the suggestion of a friend. Stay tuned for more on the healing journey in future blog posts!