5/29/22 RACE-DAY:

Alexa:

The day before the race, we picked up our bibs at the expo. As the man went to select ours from the stack, he said “what a great number.” I looked down and saw 6222. Immediately I was drawn to the angel number – repetitive sequences of numbers that appear in random places and are believed to convey spiritual messages. 222 is a symbol and message of hope, positivity, and harmony. It’s a reminder that you're on the right path and encourages you to have trust in where you are headed.

During the race I continually reminded myself that thoughts become things. Every time a negative thought came into my head I looked down at my bib and refocused my attention on the next mile ahead of me. While a combination of race day nerves, heat, and hills may have made this feel like my hardest run yet, the real battle was keeping negative thoughts at bay because I knew these thoughts would slow me down more than any hill would. 

My proudest moment would not be crossing the finish line; that’s too cliche. My proudest moment is that despite the post-race day soreness and blisters on every toe, I still want to do it again next year. Mom, you in?

~Alexa

Becky:

Split the Burlington marathon with my daughter, Alexa ✅ 

Although running half of the Burlington marathon with Alexa wasn’t on my bucket list, the experience was well worth it. This year the course consisted of two 13.1 mile loops; meaning Alexa and I ran the exact course back-to-back. On the ride home, we had fun comparing notes about city landmarks, and neighborhood-nuances.  

My strategy was to run the first ten miles comfortably; I was confident I could do that. At mile ten, my plan was to start counting down the last 3.1 miles – because in my brain, a 5k is totally doable. One-by-one I passed the tall, white marker-flags blowing in the Lake Champlain breeze. Before I knew it, I saw the “10” flag and mentally prepared for the remaining 3.1…reminding myself, it’s only a 5k. 

My running-goals are no longer about: place, time, and other performance measurements. Movement is a portal for processing emotion, hearing-in, restoring balance, and finding peace in strength. 

I’ll forever savor the joy of reading the supportive family group-text between Alexa, her three siblings, and Klaus – as she kept them posted about my 13 white-flag run…having family at my back surpasses all quantitative-measurements of a “good race”.

~Becky

How I inadvertently registered for the 2022 Burlington marathon!

Rewind to December, 2019…Alexa (middle daughter), was home on Christmas break, due to finish her last semester of college, then head off to NYC for a job. 

One evening, she entered my bedroom, laptop in hand, climbed up on my bed, (where I was reading), and proceeded…

Alexa: “Mom, we should split the Burlington marathon in May!”

Me: “I’m not running long distances anymore.”

A: “But, I’ve never done a half – it’d be so much fun.”

Me: “But, my body is 52, and…”

A: “Ahhhhhh…we can celebrate my college graduation, my last month home, and kick-off summer.”

Me: “Okay”. (my brain: WTF are you thinking?) Proof that willpower has diminished by the end of the day.

It was official – Team Name: Dance Monkeys

BUT as with almost everything that spring, the marathon was COVID-canceled! So we deferred.

Then, in 2021 (due to race-date change), we deferred again. 

And now, 2022 we’re officially in training – me in Vermont, Alexa in NYC.

Curious to compare city vs. country training, we decided to share our experiences... 

From March - May, we’ll keep you posted on matters of:

• Running locations (including photos).

• Physical symptoms.

• Mental attitude.

• Recovery.

• Distance, weather, fears, and gear.

You are invited to follow our journey. 

Oh, and if you’re curious about the team name… “Dance Monkey” was a popular, upbeat song at the time (2019), by: Tones and I. 

Week 8: Becky

One month to marathon day…how’d that happen??

When Alexa texted me over the past few weeks, and shared her increased-distance success, my quadricep-injury worried me. Truthfully, my brain went right to catastrophizing…at one point trying to figure out who could run my half of the marathon. 

After about 10 days of mild mobility (ball rolling & stretching), and walking, I managed to run a few shorter (2-3 miles) runs, followed by a five miler without too much pain. 

This weekend was “the test”, attempting an 8 miler. To my surprise, it went well; slow, but pain-free. It got me thinking, how many times in life do we give up, throw in the towel, and quit, before we give ourselves a shot? 

I’m not talking about ignoring relevant facts – like racing (exercising), when you’re sick, have a stress fracture, or are experiencing a life-crisis. I’m referring to all the times we want to make a change, create something, be a BADASS, but sit in “planning/some-day mode” and don’t take action. 

Change is challenging – period, full stop! Our brains are designed to seek comfort and safety. 

 BUT, as Joe Robinson shared in this Huffpost blog post: Comfort Is Actually Bad For You. “We're here to venture, challenge ourselves and grow. It's built into the biochemistry. Comfort is allergic to the forward progress your brain neurons crave. The goal isn't to avoid lifting a finger on this planet, but to dig in with both hands to the wisdom of uncomfortable places."

So I ask you, what wisdom are you gleaning from trying something new? How are you challenging yourself? Are you betting on your badass self and giving yourself a chance – Or are you staying comfortable, and watching from the sidelines? 

“If you want a memorable life, the research is very clear: You have to live a life worth remembering.”

Happy wisdom seeking!

Week 8: Alexa

Today marked the one-month mark until the race. I woke up relatively early and decided to kick off my Sunday with my first ten-mile run. It was a sunny, blue-sky morning, and the West Side Highway was buzzing with runners, walkers, and kids on scooters.

Now that I've increased to 5 miles out and then 5 back, I learned a trick to start running out on all the piers/walkways to add on distance along the way. The piers all have different recreational fields, turfs, courts, flower beds, and boardwalks for people to enjoy right along the water’s edge.

Week 6: Alexa

This past week was all about settling into the idea that less is more. When I started my training I had the mindset that in order to keep up my endurance I needed to run 5 or 6 days a week. I was putting a lot of pressure on myself and running almost began to feel like a chore.

As my runs got longer, I realized this mindset had to change. This week I ran 3 out of the 7 days; I felt like I made progress and got in the right amount of recovery days to sustain my stamina on these longer runs. Recovery days and good sleep have been so important as the miles increase.

Week 4: Becky & Alexa

Week 4 Becky:

Week four found me running the West Side Highway with my trusty copilot. The lack of mud, snow, and gigantic gravel rocks back home was nice, but I was challenged by concrete running. Running in boots several blocks the evening before (late for dinner reservations with my son), didn’t help matters-of-the-feet. A reminder to increase pavement running; the race course is 100% concrete.

NYC running was stimulating, the food exceptional, people-watching all encompassing, – creating memories with two of my kids, PRICELESS!

Week 4 Alexa:

This Saturday my run was accompanied by a visitor; it was a pleasure to be able to show my stomping grounds to my race partner as we begin building onto the second half of our 13.1 miles. During this run I ran without my airpods/music and chatted the entire way with my mom – surprisingly I wasn't short of breath and conversation was easy (this would not have been the case on my first few runs).

This past week of training has gotten me to the point in my running where I can kind of just keep going once I hit a point where my body is warmed up. My legs & lungs are beginning to crave more miles and my mind is more at ease as I settle into a rhythm and comfortable pace. 

Week 3: Becky

I’m not going to lie, this week’s training was hard. I managed a 5.5 mile long-run, and two 3-4 mile runs. The measuring of distance, and time is an interesting mind-funk. 

I’ve done my share of endurance training. Training as a highly competitive triathlete during college kept me chasing tempo run-splits, timed-trials on my high-end racing bike, and 5am underwater flip-turns. 

Now, four kids later, one health-crash recovery, living a less competitive, more mindful life, my brain judges the time on my watch as though I’m still trying to “make the team”. One of my trainers used to say: “if you want to race fast, you HAVE to train fast”! For years, I swam, biked and ran with the goal of being fast. I spent years counting, and measuring yards, miles, and time. Apparently, this neural network is still hard-wired. 

Years ago, I started leaving my watch at home as a conscientious effort to move through the outdoors more attuned to my surroundings. I’m currently using my Apple watch to keep tabs on my distance…it has mile time-splits (they are so SLOOOOOW) – hence the mind-funk. 

This past week during my run, I stopped to BE with these two cows…they saw me, I saw them, and TIME stood still! 

Watch, what watch? 

Time? Who cares!

Perhaps this is what Ram Dass meant by: 

“the mind stands in the way of a clear view of god”

Week 3: Alexa

After three runs back to back at the beginning of the week, I took a few days off to recover and make some time for a friend’s weekend visit. I headed out Sunday in the early evening for a run and felt like it was definitely stronger than my last few even though I was worried three days off would put me in a worse position. This was a gentle reminder that I need to allocate ‘recovery days.’ As someone who gets somewhat addicted to the “grind,” I need to step back and acknowledge that we only grow and improve when we give ourselves time to recoup. That being said, I realized it was time to give my trusty running sneakers a break and throw in a new pair to start breaking in; my plan is to swap them in here and there on my shorter runs to slowly get them in good shape to run the race in. I bought my first pair of HOKA sneakers last summer and have been in love with them ever since; the feel, the fit, the bounce, the look. So I decided to stick with what I know and buy the exact same model just a different colorway. It’s not out with the old and in with the new, it’s in with the new to give the old some rest.

Week 2: Becky

This past week brought lots of travel challenges. I knew our roads would present some terrain-training challenges, but I didn’t expect the mud season to be this bad. Our road was closed, so in addition to running, I had to walk more. With this came some plantar fascial twinges. If you’ve ever had plantar fasciitis, you know how painful it is, and how it can halt running plans.

I was careful not to catastrophize the twinges – stress contributes to bodily sensations; everything hurts more when I’m maxed. I took extra care of myself, and as Saturday approached, I was ready for my planned 5 miles.

One of the reasons I love exercise is the synchronized conversation between body, head, and heart. For me, movement fosters openness, curiosity, courteousness, and honesty with myself. It gives me an opportunity to connect with my heart, and hear stories often written from past mental-modeling (much like journaling). 

This past week’s run brought back memories of magical flow-trances, and how miles can be a relationship catalyst – for the N-of-1 study.

Sometimes the road truly does lead you home!

Week 2: Alexa

It seemed as if the time-change sparked a change not only in hours of daylight but also in the weather. This past week in NYC, temperatures reached the 70’s and my puffer coat could no longer be my safety blanket as I walked the streets. My first few training runs the week prior were in 30 degree temperatures, which made breathing hard and ears and fingers numb. However, when the weather shifted this past week, I went running in the late afternoon one day while the sun was still up and it became my toughest run yet. The sun was beating down, my leggings and long sleeve shirt were too much, and sweat was trickling down my face. I felt like this 3 miles run was the slowest so far, yet when I checked my time after I finished, my miles were the fastest I had done yet. This pleasantly surprised me and I owe it to a middle-age woman who was running ahead of me on my last mile. I had my eyes set on her and kept her pace as I ran the last leg of my run; we took safety in the shade of the fence as I realized this little heat wave was only the beginning.

Training day 1: Alexa

The only true place to run in NYC to avoid traffic, stoplights, pedestrians on their commutes, and bikers, is the West Side Highway (WSH). The WSH is a long highway that runs up the West Side of Manhattan alongside the Hudson River and right on the water's edge, there is a ~6 mile path built for runners and walkers. On this day in February I wrapped up my work a bit early and headed here to get in my first 2-mile run. This will be my stomping ground for the next few months.

Training day 1: Becky

3/12/22

Weather will be a major factor for me…today snow is blowing like a dickens (who says that anymore 😏). I’m due to run 4.5 miles tomorrow, but if the roads are too snow-covered, I’m wise enough to adjust my schedule and run on Monday (usually a recovery day).

Living on a dirt road, I understand what spring running entails. Mud, treacherous ice, and frozen ruts all add to the challenge of base-building. This phase is super important to help prevent too-much, too-soon injuries; especially for longer distances.

As mentioned, I don’t run long distances anymore. But, I’ll take one for the team, pass the baton, and wish Alexa the magic, discovery, and joy running can bring to life.

I’ve solved many life-puzzles, connected with my dad, bonded with dear friends, talked through world-chaos (like now), all on the road! I’ve never regretted going out for a run, but my family probably has regretting when I didn’t.

So Ladies…if you see me slogging on the roads of Waterbury, honk and remind me…exactly how I got myself into this 😜.

And if you too are gearing up for an upcoming event, happy-running!