Well, I did it! I finally ran the race I grew up watching and it was SPECTACULAR! It was the best race ever, but my worse marathon run ever.

By the time we got to NY on Friday I was already sick. Fever, stuffy nose, chest congestion & cough. Totally sucky. And for a while I contemplated packing it in and just not running at all. But I couldn’t do it, I couldn’t not run this race. Yes, I know how bad it is to push your body that hard when you’re not well, so please don’t tell me what an idiot I was, I already know.   But this race was really personal for me and I needed to run it no matter what, and I’m so happy I did.

I ran for Fred’s Team for Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center for Kids cancer research.  All 720 of us (on Fred’s Team) met at 4:45am for Breakfast at the Crowne Plaza Hotel in Times Square. I could feel the excitement in the air, just being home made me smile non-stop. After breakfast we went out to Times Square to take a group photo (I am front row almost center all in white!) and then hopped on the buses to take us to Staten Island. Our buses had a private police escort all the way there, and it was just so cool to watch traffic being stopped as we rode by.

The runner’s village was humungous! I had met a nice guy at breakfast (hi Scott!) and stalked him all morning. He generously gave me an extra hat he had (it was COLD) to help keep warm. We people watched the runners walking around in trash bags, sleeping bags, huddling in tents, and the die-hards that wore only shorts and a tank (I don’t know how they do it!).

Our wave was at 10am but we were in different corals, so we wished each other luck and off we went! The start of the race is so beautiful. Running over the Verrazano Bridge you can see the entire city ahead and it is magnificent. I started off alright, pacing myself and trying not to go out too fast, but once we got to the spectators I got caught up in the euphoria of it all. It felt like all of NY was cheering just for me. The crowds were so amazing and supportive that I was teary and overflowing with emotion. I have so many memories in every borough, that no matter how sick I was feeling, I was just so happy to be ‘home’.

Looking at my times, I was actually doing ok time wise, at the half it was 2:05. By mile 17 (pic above) I was still smiling. Going up 1st avenue I ran by the Fred’s Team cheering section with all the kids there and it was electric.

But by the time I got 10 19-20 my chest really started to burn. I was coughing a lot so I tried to keep my focus on steadying my breathing and just chugging along. By 21 I had to take lots of walking breaks and was cursing myself out for running the race. I had $5 in my pocket and wondered if I should just hail a cab to the finish. Ugh, I didn’t know whether to laugh or to cry. It was painful. I couldn’t do it though, I had to finish, even if it meant crawling.

24-26 took forever and when I finally saw the finish line I started to cry. 4:42 was my finishing time, significantly slower than I had hoped, but to be honest, I don’t really care. Running & finishing the race was enough for me. It was the best.

I apologize for being MIA.  This past month has been a vicious cycle of illness.  Fever, runny nose, coughing, sneezing, headaches, body aches…you name it, this family has had it and we’ve been passing it back-n-forth.  Apparently this is quite common with the first year of preschool.  While our adorable tot is picking up every germ possible at school and building her immune system, we get to partake in the booger & phlegm party!  Needless to say I’ve had zero desire to do much of anything lately.

In other news, the NYC Marathon is this Sunday…I am still planning on running.  This last month of training has been half-assed, but I think I’m ready.  Right now the goal is just to cross the finish line.

I hope all of you are happy & healthy.  I miss my bloggy buddies!  Next week I’ll post my post marathon update with pics.  Hugs to all!

My mother’s best friend died of breast cancer.  My classmate is a breast cancer survivor.  Last week I met a woman that had just been diagnosed.  It is estimated that a woman is diagnosed every 3 minutes.

An estimated 182,460 new cases of invasive breast cancer are expected to occur among women in the United States during 2008. An estimated 40,480 women will die from breast cancer. It is estimated that 1,990 men will be diagnosed and 450 men will die of breast cancer during 2008. In addition to invasive breast cancer, 67,770 new cases of in situ breast cancer are expected to occur among women in 2008. Of these, approximately 85 percent will be ductal carcinoma in situ (DCIS). (Source: American Cancer Society Cancer Facts & Figures 2008)

To all of those that have fought and are still fighting this disease, I honor you, salute you and thank you for inspiring me with your bravery & warrior spirits.

For information on early detection & screening please go here.

Yesterday Erin (aka Ladybug’s Picnic) and I co-hosted a rockin’ 3-a-day of Dairy “Good Morning” Meetup Event in her fabulous home (and I mean Fab-U-lous!)  I’m having serious kitchen envy! 

The event featured a sampling of delicious new products from Cabot, Hood, Dannon, & Yoplait, a breakfast recipe demo, a Q & A, a super yummy Breakfast Dinner, Giveaways and Giftbags.

Nourish Your Morning is an initiative that emphasizes the importance of a healthy breakfast that includes delicious dairy such as low-fat milk, yogurt or cheese.  I for one can’t have my morning coffee without a little cream!

Here are some pics from the event.  Please forgive the quality as they were taken with my phone. 

Erin & Me

Sampling spread

Jane & Jenny from the New England Dairy & Food Council

Katherine, Jane, Jenny

Jane giving a recipe demo

Breakfast Quesadilla & Apple Yogurt Smoothie

My fave - Breakfast for dinner!!!

Chefs from Green Olive Catering

Giftbags! (checkout Erin’s awesome fireplace)

Paaaaaaaaaaaaaarrrrrrrrtaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaay!

Thank you Erin (& Mr.P), Edelman (K & C), NEDFC, Green Olive Catering, Annie, Sarah, Tania & Lyn for making this such an incredible event!

Guest post by Kiki of Does This Blog Make Us Look Fat? If you haven’t done so already, you must check these ladies out! This super fun duo ( Kiki & Greta ) are hilarious!

There’s a self help saying that rhymes like this, “name it, claim it.” The theory being how can you get better if you don’t first admit you’re sick? Well I have some long held diet delusions and I’m naming them. I’d like you to take a lighter and burn them okay? Maybe then they can stop slapping me down.

Name It Diet Delusion - I can lose 5 pounds a week.
Now since 1969 this has happened ONCE and I had mono but still. It’s like how I believe I will have that dance with Danny Zucko at the gym sock hop. I can’t let it go. (And young tweens of today flash forward to 2028 and replace Zucko with Zac Efron, also in the gym. What I’m saying here is save your pity you’ll need it for your own future self.)
Claim It
Losing 1 to 2 pounds a week is a healthy pace for permanent weight loss. Losing 1 to 2 pounds a week is a healthy pace for permanent weight loss. Losing 1 to 2 pounds a week… yadayada

Name It Diet Delusion - I will get down to my goal weight by {insert occasion}. When I arrive at {insert occasion} I’ll incite desire in some and rage in others. And I will also instantaneously know how to ballroom dance at this new weight.
Claim It
Healthy eating is about lifestyle change and a lifestyle commitment not careening toward {insert occasion.} And no matter what you weigh ballroom dancing is likely not going to spontaneously break out. ALSO you shouldn’t want others to be enraged by your thinness. It’s about health not jealousy. However it is perfectly fine if everybody wants you. (Ask Billy Squire.)

Name It Diet Delusion - I will start my diet tomorrow/Monday/January 1st.
Claim It
The choice for a healthy lifestyle starts now, not Monday. Each minute is a choice. Each minute is an opportunity. And each minute those friggin’ cookies sit in the kitchen all naked and exposed they gain strength. Must destroy cookies.

Name It Diet Delusion - I can’t help it. I have no willpower.
Claim It - I AM SHE-RA, PRINCESS OF POWER, MISTRESS OF THE UNIVERSE. MY WILLPOWER CAN RENT THE EARTH ASSUNDER! Sorry. I got a little carried away.

Name It Diet Delusion - I’ve already cheated so I’ll just eat everything since the day’s already ruined.
Claim It- It’s that choice thing again. A mistep shouldn’t lead to totally chucking my progress. A mistep shouldn’t lead to chucking my progress. A mistep yadayadayada

Name It Diet Delusion - I love chocolate. I can’t live without it so much a lot. (My love of chocolate can’t be bound by grammar or sense a lot.)
Claim It - Fat Free Sugar Free Jello with whipped cream is just as good. This is a lie. Chocolate so much a lot is better. God help me if loving it is wrong I don’t want to be right.

Name it Diet Delusion - I’ll start exercising after I lose a few pounds.
Claim It- Exercise is about health and strength. It is not about weight. No matter what size I am exercise needs to be a part of my daily life. Besides if Patrick Swayze and I are really going to get that lift right I’ve got to work on my core.

So everyone - Name Your Diet Delusion and Claim the Solution. There are people out there right? Did I delusion that up too?

And don’t tell the guards but I’ve now lost 13 pounds since January. Keep it to yourself or they’ll make me put it back on. The guards like to boss She-Ra around. Friggin’ Guards.

Guest post by the lovely Rachel from Fitness for Mommies. Rachel is a mom, wife and athlete passionate about fitness, running, cycling, yoga & pilates. I am always inspired to push myself further after reading her blog. She is currently training for the St. George Marathon (October), with a goal to qualify for Boston. I know she will do it! Go Rach!

Yoga. You can either love it or hate it. But, we all need it in our lives. Whether you are a seriously fit gym goer or an avid athlete, you need yoga to balance your body. I learned an incredibly tough lesson recently that I’d like to share with you. A little background, I have been an athlete my whole life. If I wasn’t running, I was cycling, if I wasn’t doing either of those things, then I was hiking 10,000 peaks with my lifetime sierra club member Dad. When I was young, my dad ran his first triathlon at the young age of 43. This has a profound impact on who I am today. Currently training for my fourth marathon and Coach Al always SAID to pay attention to any tightness or twinges that you feel. I paid attention, I just didn’t know what to do about it! Twinges can turn into a serious injury. On a 20 mile run last weekend, I had run 15 miles and then. my. knee. went. out. (Knee pain is never the true cause of the problem- it usually starts in the hips!) Turned into three miles of jog/walking before I got picked up by hubby. Not sure I could have seen this problem coming, but the truth is I have felt weird twinges all through my body on every single long run. Stress, impact, mileage will turn a weakness into an injury. What is the solution? Yoga. But, specifically, yoga and stretches to strengthen YOUR weaknesses. Felt like I was given a piece of cake, when Coach sent me this link. Wish I had been doing this all along!!

Introducing Sage Roundtree: endurance athlete, cycling coach, triathlon coach, and a registered yoga teacher and author of the Athletes Guide to Yoga. I have been particularly excited about the Podcasts on her site. Most are only 5 -10 minutes long (FREE) and they are specifically designed with an athlete in mind. Of all the yoga DVD’s I have been doing, NONE focus only on the hips! Three Cheers for that! Check out Yin Yoga- only 3 or 4 poses but held a really long time for a deep stretch in the hips. Also, check out the Core and More workout. Challenging plank poses that can be done anytime anywhere with your yoga mat or not.

Lesson learned: Listen to your body! It is telling you something. Try to figure out the weakness and work on that!

Guest Post by Lisa of Workout Mommy, the fun & fabulous blog about how to fit fitness into your mommy day. Her motto “A fit mommy is a happy mommy!”    Alleluia Sista! Can I getta ‘AMEN!’?

Fitarella is currently training for my favorite marathon, New York City! I ran it in 2003 and there is just nothing that compares. The crowd support, the energy, and just the mere fact that I was running through the streets of New York City made it my favorite running race.

Here are a few of my favorite memories from the race:

* Waiting in line for a bus to take us to the starting area. I was in line for over two hours, but I met so many cool people that it helped to ease my race jitters.

* Starting the race with 40,000+ other people as “New York, New York” was blasting in my ears.

* Running across the Verrazano-Narrows Bridge. It was actually swaying from the force of all the runners!

* The crowd support! Everyone and anyone comes out to watch this marathon. The roar of the crowd as I turned on 1st Avenue made me feel like a rock star! (in my mind. My legs of course, felt like jello!)

* Running through Central Park. I had never been there before and it is beautiful.

* I passed P. Diddy (Puff Daddy? Sean Combs? What is his name now?) at mile 24. He had his posse of trainers, bodyguards, motorcycle cops, and lackeys with him, yet I still managed to run faster! Yay me!

* and my most favorite memory was running across the finish line as my favorite rocker Bon Jovi belted out “Living on a Prayer”. (recorded, unfortunately not in person)

The New York City marathon is a MUST for any marathoner out there. Don’t run it for time, just run it for FUN!