The Foot...Dun Dun Dun....

Well, I had my follow up with Dr. Rob, my chiropractor, yesterday. The good news is, he is positive that we WILL work through this. The bad news is, we have no idea how long it will take to heal. Bummer.com! He still thinks this is coming from the way I run, but as of now, we don't know for sure. The other issue is, it has also started hurting all over my foot, including my arch, so walking or even just sitting is pretty painful. Dr. Rob worked on my ankle/foot a bunch, which was pretty painful, but in a good way. Then I had the electrical stem on my foot, which is trip...I hate how it makes my toes tingle! I also had a laser work done. This was all new to me! It was pretty interesting. The laser could sense where my problem areas were and it would spend time "zapping" the area. It was obviously working because it spent a lot of time on the areas that hurt the worst. Technology is such a neat thing! So, I am supposed to give it a few days and see if these things have helped. As I type this post, I am icing and elevating my foot. It is always worse at the end of the day. Being a stay at home mommy to a VERY active almost 17 month old, means I am on my feet a lot throughout the day, so it's no wonder it hurts badly towards the end of the day. As of now I am not supposed to do any running. I can cross train (like spinning) if my ankle isn't too sore, but it has been too sore to do anything the past two days. So, Saturday, if I am not in too much pain, the plan is that I am to try and run 20 minutes. If I can do 20 minutes without pain, great! If it hurts, I can stop or try and finish, depending on the pain level. I am really hoping and praying I can do 20 minutes without pain! After the 20 minutes, I will ice it immediately and keep it elevated as I cheer on my teammates coming in from their runs! I am a tad sad that I cannot do the 5 miles that I am scheduled to do, but I know that the most important thing to do is to heal so I can get to 13.1 with ease and no pain! I am scheduled with Dr. Rob for the next 6 weeks and will most likely continue to see him throughout my training for the half marathon. I told him yesterday, that is is on my team..."Team Keep Ashley Going!" He totally agreed with me! It is really great to have an awesome support system to help me get through everything! I also got adjusted yesterday...neck, back, he tried to do my ankles and legs, but they wouldn't adjust. I am pretty sore today, but think I should be feeling better by tomorrow! All of my muscles are pretty tight, so the adjustment was much needed. All in all, it seems like I am on the road to recovery...let's hope it's a short one! This girl wants to run! :) Stay tuned for a post on another new member of my team, my nutritionist! She is awesome as well and I am really enjoying working with her!

With Love,
Ashley

"When you get to the end of your rope, tie a knot and hang on." -Theodore Roosevelt

The Pink Glove Dance

So, as the title of my blog reads, " I run for Life," and even though I am specifically fundraising to support The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society, I still want to recognize other cancers as well. The video below is dedicated to Breast Cancer, which also has a special place in my heart, because my mom was diagnosed with that towards the end of her Chemo for Non-Hodgkin's Lymphoma. This video was made at a Providence St. Vincent Medical Center in Portland, Oregon to raise money/awareness for Breast Cancer. It is such a great video and I cry every time I watch it. It is truly amazing how many people out there in the world, support finding a cure for cancers of all kinds! Hope you enjoy this video! :)

Low

Low is what I am feeling tonight. It has been a rough evening. I was planning to go for a run around 5 tonight...my ankle has been hurting pretty much all day but it's been bearable...then around 3:30, it started to hurt worse and it didn't get better. I decided it was best not to run on it this evening, but I am really struggling with it tonight. The pain is annoying, but I can deal with it. It's the training that I am upset about. I have fully committed myself to this marathon, to the fundraising, to Team In Training and I just want to be able to do my training without pain. In the grand scheme of life, I will get through this and I will run the marathon in October, but right now, I am having a tough time. I made this blog to document my journey in all aspects, so I feel it's important for me to remember days like this. I see the chiropractor, Dr. Rob, on Wednesday, so hopefully he will have some more info for what we can do to fix me! I tried to get in tomorrow morning too, but they said I could come in but would have to wait awhile, which I can't do with Teddy in tow. He sat in his stroller for an hour and a half the other day while I saw the Dr. Rob and I just can't do that to him again. Sean made me an ice bath tonight and I tried to put my foot in it a gazillion times, but each time, it was sooooooo freezing, I couldn't stay in! He said it is "mind over matter," but the pain was shooting up my leg! My mom used to do full body ice baths when she trained for her marathon and I have no idea how she did it! It is so COLD! I am going to continue with ice, elevation, compression and Advil tonight and tomorrow and hopefully I will have good news to report here on Wednesday! Meantime, I will stick to spinning since that really doesn't hurt my ankle. No matter how low I feel tonight, I know it could be a billion times worse if I or someone I love, were lying in a hospital, ill with cancer. Instead, I am running for all these people. As one of our mentor's has on his training shirt "Running is a bitch, but Cancer sucks!" So true. This is a minor speed bump on my way to 13.1!

With Love,
Ashley

Skin

Here is a music video of a song that I love. When my mom was first diagnosed, a friend of mine turned me on to this song. As I listened to it, while crying hysterically, I knew I had to share with my family. I went home and booted up my computer and we all sat there listening to the song, over and over again, crying. My sister, Kelley and I, used to listen to it a lot, while my mom was sick and going through chemo. It has a lot of sentimental value to us. About 2 months ago, I was driving in my car and this song came on...I couldn't believe it because it's not a very popular song and I had never heard it on the radio before and not many people have heard of it! My sister called me a few days later and said it came on randomly on her ipod...so crazy that we both heard it around the same time. We both still cry hysterically every.single.time. we hear it. After you listen, you'll understand why...

Also, I would just like to add that I pray that my son would someday do the same thing for his girlfriend if she were ever (God Forbid) in the same situation as Sara Beth. It takes a very special person to do something like that. :)

With Love,

Ashley

My Misson Moment

Here is a video of me doing my "Mission Moment" at our TEAM training yesterday morning. Every week, one person on the team explains their reasons for doing Team In Training. This is strictly a volunteer thing, so not everyone has to share a story. So far, we have heard a couple amazing stories from some gals on our team about their direct connections with blood cancers. This has become one of my favorite parts of our Saturday sessions. I really love to hear people's stories for why they are doing this. As you know, I have a direct connection to The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society, seeing as my mother is a Non-Hodgkin's Lymphoma survivor, so, I chose to share my story with my team this week. Please take a peak...you may want to grab a Kleenex...I started crying on the video before I even started telling my story! Hope you enjoy it! :)

With Love,

Ashley

Run it...

Well, this morning my team and I ran 2 miles. It was a "back down day," which was much needed for me since I have been recovering from an ankle injury for the past two weeks. Since I had taken about a week and a half off running, 2 miles was rough on me today! I did intervals today and ran five minutes, walked one minute. It was pretty tough because until today, I had been running 3 minutes and walking 2 minutes. I never realized how much i needed that extra walk minute until today! I did pretty well and I am sure it will get easier as time goes by...right?! Of course! Thankfully I had my trusty Garmin 305 to help me through the two miles. As you see in the "where i buy my gear" side bar, it is my new best friend and I seriously could not do it without this little guy. I actually decided to name him...Greg. Greg the Garmin. A lot of my close friends know I like to name things; My car's name is Ben. So I figured I'd better name the Garmin since we have a long road ahead of us to get to 13.1 miles! In case you missed the side bar link to where you can purchase your own Greg the Garmin, click here! As for my ankle, it is pretty sore, but I think it's going to be ok. I saw my chiropractor this week and plan on seeing him weekly or more if necessary until we get all my kinks ironed out. I am icing my ankle as I write this post and it is much needed after an eventful day. Not only did I run the 2 miles today but I also had to chase my 16 month old all over the beach and ocean for a few hours this afternoon, so I think the sand did not help, but the ice is helping! I did my "mission moment" today at our TEAM practice and it went really well. It is basically where you share why you chose to do Team In Training. I alsways get emotional when talking about my mom and her battle with cancer. All in all the training is going really well! Oh! I almost forgot! I am at 50 percent of my fundraising goal, so I received my Team In Training hat as a reward today! I am pretty proud that I am 50 percent there, but I plan to raise as much money as possible, so hopefully there is a lot more to come! This money is so important for research and there is no doubt that because of fundraising like we do in Team In Training, that is part of the reason why people, like my mom is still with us today!

With Love,
Ashley

blisters, calluses and a hurt ankle! oh my!

In the words of my husband, "if it was easy, everyone would be doing it." Such true words, such a smart hubby. This is something he said to me in the beginning as I went back and forth on my decision to join Team In Training. This pretty much solidified why I wanted to do this! So, since this blog is to keep track of things, here we go!

During our first training session, I did pretty well. I Ran/walked the two miles with my buddy Amber and felt pretty great afterwards. Then came the 3 miles the following week...I started to get blisters and calluses! Ouch. They can be pretty darn painful. I hightailed it back to the Running Center, where I buy my shoes and socks and begged them to help me figure out my issue. They assured me this was pretty common in runners and the girls even showed me their own feet to assure me of this fact! They also told me that the pain will go away...eventually...so, they recommended buying Toe Caps, a silicone cap that goes over any of my toes that are rubbing. They also suggested Body Glide. Also, they gave me a special pair of blister prevention socks! So nice! Well, I love the toe caps and the socks so far! They have definitely helped with my feet. I haven't tried the Body Glide yet, but from what a few Team In Training Alumni told me last Saturday, it's only a matter of time before the chafing begins...so I'm sure I'll be using it in no time!

Well, as I was on the mend, I had yet another issue! Somehow, I hurt my ankle and I continued to run on it and then ran on it again two days later. Not smart, I suppose. But, I have really been trying to be strict about my training. I now know that sometimes rest is the most important part of your training. So, as of now, I have had to take about a week off running (well, it will be a week on Wednesday) to let my ankle heal. I have been elevating, icing, and taking Advil. Being the mom of a sixteen month old, I can't really ever stay off my feet, so I'm doing the best I can trying to take it easy! I am ready to get back out there though. I have come to really enjoy my workouts, whether it be running or walking or spinning. We still are not sure how I injured my ankle. We are leaning towards it being the way my foot moves inside my shoe. So I was fitted with inserts and I am hoping and praying that this will solve this issue! Being someone who pretty much deals with aches and pains on a daily basis from my hips issues(will get into this another time), it has been frustrating to have this ankle injury. After talking to my coaches and the fabulous people at the Running Center, I now realize that these kinds of things are extremely common and this probably won't be my only injury during my journey to San Fransisco for the marathon...though I am praying this is it! My ankle still hurts, but putting things into perspective...this is nothing compared to what a lot of people are going through and I will overcome this minor stuff...minor bumps in the road to 13.1 miles!

With Love,
Ashley

Melissa Etheridge Singing "I Run For Life"

Please take a few minutes to listen to this song. You will be glad you did! :)

Ps...the video is a tad blurry, but the video is not the important part, the words in the song are! Enjoy!



With Love,
Ashley

i run for life

I wanted to give a quick explanation for why I chose the title of my blog. You may know the song "I Run for life" by Melissa Etheridge. I first heard this song around 5:50 in the morning during an awesome, but grueling spin class. As I was trying my best not to fall of my bike from exhaustion, I started to tear up listening to the words of this amazing song and it totally rejuvenated me in many ways that morning. It is such a beautiful song and is about Melissa Etheridge's own battle with cancer. The song may be about breast cancer, but it can be about any cancer or any illness. I have often thought of this song as I am dragging myself through the last mile of my run when I am training with my team and I think of all the people out there are in a seriously tough battle with cancer of all kinds. So, I am, in fact, running for life as I train and fund raise for my upcoming marathon. So, I decided that "I Run for Life" is a great title for the blog that will journal me as I run for life! Please check out the words to this song below. I am pretty sure that you will find it as encouraging and uplifting as I do. I will be posting a video of the song as well and I hope you take the time to listen to it. It is truly inspiring.

I Run for Life song lyrics

It's been years since they told her about it
The darkness her body possessed
And the scars are still there in the mirror
Everyday that she gets herself dressed
Though the pain is miles and miles behind her
And the fear is now a docile beast
If you ask her why she is still running
She'll tell you it makes her complete

[Chorus:]
I run for hope
I run to feel
I run for the truth
For all that is real
I run for your mother your sister your wife
I run for you and me my friend I run for life

It's a blur since they told me about it
How the darkness had taken its toll
And they cut into my skin and they cut into my body
But they will never get a piece of my soul
And now I'm still learning the lesson
To waken when I hear the call
And if you ask me why I am still running
I'll tell you I run for us all

[Chorus]

And someday if they tell you about it
If the darkness knocks on your door
Remember her remember me
We will be running as we have before
Running for answers
Running for more



With Love,
Ashley

well, here i am!

Well, I did it. I created a blog. I've been going back and forth about starting a blog for a couple years now, but never took the plunge. I've decided I'm ready to dive into the blog world. What better way to keep track of this amazing journey that I am embarking on! As you may know, I have decided to train for a half marathon...13.1 miles! Yep, you read that correctly, 13.1 miles! So, let's go back a bit, so you can understand why I have decided to embark on this journey...

When I was a sophomore in college, my mother was diagnosed with Non-Hodgkin's Lymphoma. I remember such a feeling of helplessness that I wished I could do something, anything to make her not be sick. At the time, I wasn't sure what I could do. But, then my mom decided to train with Team In Training and train for the LA Marathon...26.2 miles...while undergoing chemotherapy! Wow! I have always carried the thought of someday following in her footsteps and doing a half marathon (maybe a full someday!), but I never could squeeze it into my busy life. Then I had my son, and my heart, which has always been heavy regarding cancer, illness, etc, has become a million times heavier than I ever thought it could when thinking or hearing about adults, kids and babies sick with cancer. I have yearned to make some sort of a difference in the world ever since I had him. As cliche as it sounds, having a child makes you want to be a better person. My son has done this to me and it, along with him are both amazing and huge blessings. Then one day, my friend and workout buddy invited me to a Team In Training informational session and after hearing all they had to say at the session, I was pretty much hooked. After a few discussions with the hubs about our schedules, I decided to take the plunge and here I am, training and fundraising! Although I have questioned my decisions to raise at least 4,000 dollars (hopefully more) and to run 13.1 miles on October 17th, i know this will be a life changing experience for me and I am loving the challenge so far.

So, I have decided that the best way to keep track of my journey is to blog about it. I want to be able to remember all the details, the good, the bad and the ugly. We are only about a month into training and I have met some amazing people, heard some amazing stories and am thoroughly enjoying myself...blisters, aches, pains and all! Please stop by my blog frequently to check on me and see how I am doing with my training and most importantly, my fundraising. I hope you enjoy this tiny snapshot into my life...it may not always be pretty or perky, but life isn't always pretty and perky and in the grand scheme of everything, i am doing this marathon and raising this money to help find a cure for blood cancers; though I believe I am out there running and raising money for everyone who has ever battled any type of cancer or lost a loved one to cancer. So, stick around and be a part of my journey as I run for life.

With Love,
Ashley