Summary of Winter Training for DFMC 2015

Some talented teammates put this together.  What a difference a month and some 50F days make!

Link for the video in case it is not working: https://youtu.be/GzyBkIEfM8I

Disappointing Week of Training

After our 22 mile run last Saturday, I felt really good!  Saturday was a good day and there was no indication that I was going to deal with calf/achilles pain on Sunday.  After waking up Sunday and feeling good, my lower calf (soleus muscle perhaps?) decided to seize up and be in pain the rest of the day.  As much as I tried to stretch and relax it, my leg would not give.

After more stretching and a massage on Monday, there was a little improvement, but nothing noteworthy.  I must have gained some wisdom in my years of running as on Tuesday, I was prepared to not run at all until the marathon.  None of these runs during the next 2 weeks will make a huge difference and my goal is to run the Boston marathon on April 20, not a Thursday run on April 2.

Luckily, I was able to get in and get some treatment on Wed.  I took the rest of the week off and was able to go out for a run today.  I kept it short (7 miles) but felt good overall; a little calf pain on the various hills, but pretty good.  I certainly didn't want to overdo it and we'll see how things feel tomorrow.

Amy and I heading out for our Saturday run

What's been so motivating this week is that after my latest fundraising e-mail, 10 additional donors have contributed to my DFMC efforts and collectively we've raised $9,832 thus far!  It really is incredible that ~120 people have supported my efforts and we're nearing the $10,000 mark this year!!  I can't thank everyone enough for their generosity and support of all my efforts!

Fundraiser & 22 Miles!

The last 2 weeks have been quite busy so I missed updating the blog, but it's been a productive 2 weeks!  Thanks to many generous people, we've raised over $8,400 as of this week!  Part of this was the result of our successful fundraiser.  We had a good turnout at Meadhall and thanks to donations from local businesses and everyone who attended, we raised even more money for DFMC through the opportunity drawing!  Thanks everyone!

Prize buckets for the opportunity drawing.

Training is still going well and yesterday was our longest run.  Similar to past years, it was great to run with so many other charity runners, though the weather was less than optimal.  While many charities started in Hopkinton and ran in to Boston, we started at BC, ran out to Wellesley and headed back to BC.  For the 2nd run in a row, I thought that snow and wind were blowing in our faces as we headed out.  Of course, once we turned around the wind and snow would be at our backs, right?!  Both times I was wrong and the snow hit us in the face both ways!  Last week's run in Wayland was a bit worse, but (and I'm not hoping for this) I wouldn't be surprised if we had snow around April 20 and the marathon!  Fingers crossed this doesn't happen.

Yesterday's run was better than expected and we finished strong, running faster in the 2nd 1/2 than the 1st 1/2 and even finishing the last 6 miles around or under a 9min/mile pace!  Here are some pics from our long run this weekend...

Heading out around mile 1 or 2 with lots of runners on the road

Newton giving runners a lane of the road

Amy starting off with a smile

Before the snow and wind soaked through shoes and pants

Saucony provided support along the route

Before we started the run, the DFMC team supported some of our biggest supporters, Team Matty.  They have volunteered at every DFMC group run this year and shared Matty's story with us all these weeks.  Hearing of Matty's battle with cancer and running in his memory has surely motivated everyone on the team.  Thanks again to Team Matty for all their support this year!

Team Matty water stop!

DFMC team before the big reveal...

DFMC team all in 'Team Matty' shirts!

DFMC Training, Poster Making and Fundraising

The last week was a flurry of activity and will continue through March 28!  Thanks to so many great donors and friends, we've raised over $7,400 thus far!  A great effort and well on our way to reaching our $11,000 goal for this year.

To help reach $11,000, 3 of us DFMC runners are having a fundraiser on March 25 in Cambridge at Meadhall.  Similar to past years, we've made lots of donation inquiries and many generous companies have donated gift cards, tickets and more to the fundraiser!  The latest contributor, Cinquecento Boston, donated a gift card covering dinner for 2!  Thanks to Cinquecento Boston and many other wonderful donors for all the great prizes!

This weekend was also busy with our training run and the Patient Partner Poster Party!  For several reasons, I didn't run with the team this weekend but luckily, as a drop down week, I only had to forego DFMC team support for 13 miles.  Afterward, I was able to spend the afternoon with RJ making his poster.  The posters are displayed in the hall outside of the DFMC Pasta dinner the night before the marathon, reminding all us runners why we run and fundraise for DFMC.  RJ's poster turned out great and is just waiting for DFMC to add his picture.  It was a great afternoon seeing all the patients and their families, providing that extra motivation as we head into our final 2 long runs, including a 22 miler on March 28th.