What a deal!

I would like to take the opportunity to share about an exciting purchase I made recently. I actually made two critical purchases in the last week or two. I upgraded to an iphone after my nano was showing some long-term side effects of the washing machine incident, and the other purchase was a running essential for me...A new lymphedema sleeve.

I got an insider-email from a company called Lymphedivas. They were having a 24-hour half-price sale on their stylish lymphedema sleeves. This was a big deal, because these things don't come cheap.


Rocking the sleeve

If you're asking yourself, "What the heck is lymphedema?" I'll give you the short version. Lymphedema is swelling that occurs in a limb after lymph nodes are removed. Lymph nodes are systems of thingies that are like very tiny bunches of grapes. They control fluid flow through out the body. There are clusters all over the body, and when they're removed, the body can have trouble pulling fluid back out of the limb. A compression sleeve can help the body with this process.

Lymph nodes are commonly removed when a person is suspected to have cancer in them. Having lymphedema of the arm is probably more common in breast cancer survivors, but as a melanoma survivor, I have the same affliction. One of the annoyances of lymphedema is that I need to wear a compression sleeve when I fly on an airplane or exercise. In more severe cases, a person needs to wear a sleeve all the time- I had to do that for a while. It sucks.

What sucks even more than wearing an uncomfortable elastic sleeve that digs into your elbow and causes your fingers to turn into pins and needles while you sit on an airplane, pump iron, or go for a run, is that the standard lymphedema sleeve is a fleshy tan color. Ew.

Lymphedivas to the rescue: lightweight, breathable sleeves that come in (gasp!) a wide array of colors and patterns. I ordered some of these interesting sleeves a few years ago, and was very happy with them. I've been in the market for some new sleeves for quite a while, but they are pretty expensive. The sleeves are only supposed to last for a matter of months, and with all the time I spend wearing one (every time I work out) my current selection is looking pretty shabby.

So when the Divas sent me the info about their sale, I jumped on their site and got myself some new goods. They arrived a few days later in the most adorable package. They were wrapped in beautiful pink and patterned tissue paper, and came with a pen, nail file, and full-color large brochure about their products. It was like getting a present. When I finally unwrapped it, I was even more pleased with what I had gotten. The sleeve and gauntlet (hand piece) are brightly colored and since my last order, the gauntlet has been redesigned for better comfort. I am really enjoying putting on my new purchase before starting a workout.

Kudos to Lymphedivas for not only your awesome sale, but your even more awesome products. I'll be the girl at the gym rocking the sweet compression sleeve.

Hope, Love, Run,
Marathon Girl

Back to Reality

I've slipped back into my real life since my very quick trip to Atlanta. It was an amazing and rewarding experience, speaking to about 400 Lilly employees. The whole thing felt surprisingly natural and comfortable. I found that I wasn't nervous at all, and I couldn't believe it was over already when the hour came to an end.

I was gone for all of twenty-two hours, before I returned home to my 'normal' life. The next day I was back at work, speaking to a much smaller and younger audience about such things as how to find the volume of a prism and speculative writing prompts. What a difference a day makes!

I missed a run because of my trip, but since I've returned home, I have completed all my scheduled runs and nearly all my strength workouts. I occasionally skip out on strength if my schedule gets particularly hectic.

Where in the World is Marathon Girl?

Well, in case you were wondering, I’m currently in Atlanta, Georgia. I know, unexpected, right? Since snow days claimed my February break, I’m excited to get away, even if it’s for such a short trip. This isn’t exactly a vacation, although getting to take a ride in a town car and stay in a hotel sure feel like a special getaway, even if it’s only for twenty-four hours.

A few months ago, I was contacted by Lilly Oncology again and asked if I would be interested in being a part of a patient/survivor panel at their national sales meeting. I was really excited at the prospect of speaking about my experience with cancer to a group of people from the healthcare community. Now, with my first real speaking engagement about nine hours away, I am even more excited, but I'm also feeling the butterflies at this point.

Speaking in front of a group of people doesn’t really scare me, I do that on a daily basis as part of my job. The nerves are because I am considering this an opportunity, and I want it to go as well as it possibly can. I would love, love, LOVE to have more opportunities like this…And it’s not about getting the chance to indulge in the novelties reserved for private-sector employees that my job doesn’t allow for- flying to distant cities, taking town cars to and from the airport, and yummy meals paid for ahead of time.

This is about feeling like I am doing something that matters. Not that what I do on a daily basis doesn’t matter. This trip is just the expression of a second passion. My first love, education, is one that I believe will satisfy me for the rest of my professional career. But since being diagnosed, I have developed a second love, one for advocacy. It may seem like a completely different avenue to explore, but it’s really not that much of a stretch.

When I was twelve, I didn’t know what I was going to be when I grew up. I had a goal though. That goal hasn’t changed in the last fourteen years. I have always wanted to have a positive impact on as many people as I can possibly reach. I want to be remembered as someone who did something that mattered and made a difference in the lives of others. I do realize this is a completely immeasurable goal, but I still feel that it describes what I want to achieve during my lifetime, and both education and advocacy fit neatly under the umbrella of a goal I have maintained for more than half of my life. If you’ve read anything on here or know me more personally, I am nothing if not goal-oriented.

So tomorrow morning, I will be speaking to people, not just representing myself, but the 70,000 other young adults who are diagnosed with cancer each year. For the ones who are too sick to speak, are too busy fighting, and especially those who were not diagnosed in time and don’t have a voice anymore. So wish me luck, and here’s to making an impact.

Hope. Love. Run,

Marathon Girl

Countdown to Training

Official training starts next week! In the meantime, I have been extremely busy. I knew the first half of 2011 would be crazy, and I think I prepared for it as best I could, but the next few months are going to be challenging.

I've been keeping a grueling schedule that involves my usual 9-10 hour work days (plus evening prep work), daily workouts, and since mid January, two graduate level courses. I'll also be resuming coaching Girls on the Run two days a week at the beginning of April, but I'm hoping by then my grad school work will be winding down.

As difficult as it is to manage my current schedule, I know it's finite and it's all in keeping with reaching goals I am determined to achieve. I want to run the half in May, and I am equally determined to finish my masters in 2012.

I cannot describe how motivating it is to see all the donations my family and friends have contributed to support my half marathon goal. I have already raised over $800.00 for First Descents! I am still hoping to reach my goal of $2,500.00 by May, so I'll encourage you again to check out my First Giving page and watch the video about my journey with cancer, and if you're moved to do so, make a donation, anything is appreciated.

I'm keeping this post short because I still have more work to do tonight, and an early morning workout planned for tomorrow!

Hope, Love, Run!
-Marathon Girl

Taking it Easy

It was 40 degrees out today! The piles of snow are slowly melting, and I'm really hoping that the warm weather that is expected this week means that winter is on its way out. I took advantage of the 'warm' weather and went for an outside run. This was actually the second outdoor run I did this week. Back on Monday, it was in the high thirties, and although it was dusk by the time I got home from work, I couldn't resist the urge and went for a run.

It felt like forever since I ran outside. It was SO good to be in the open, the pavement under my sneakers, the cold air numbing my ears and nose. It was the magic of outdoor running that led me to run farther and farther...Farther than I should have.

How far out I ran wasn't the problem. It was the rest of the way back that started to hurt. My legs were sore, and my ankles clearly need some rebuilding from the last few months of shorter treadmill runs, but I was certainly not sorry I went out that night.

Today was another warm day, and being the weekend, I didn't need to run in the dark. I was tempted to take one of the routes I came to love at the end of my last half-marathon training. One of the 10-12 milers that runs along the river. I fought the urge though, and went in the other direction, the one that only allows for a three mile run, because beyond that there's only highway.

I learned last spring that getting too ambitious too early equals injury. And injury only equals RICE (Rest, Ice, Compression, Elevation). I did that last spring, and I'd like to think I'm slightly wiser after 600 plus miles of running and training for a half-marathon.

The week looks good for some more outdoor runs. It might even get up to 50 degrees! I'll keep you posted. The next three weeks mark the last ones before I officially begin training for the Run to Remember in Boston. I'm really excited about training, and what this race symbolizes. I'd also like to thank all the people who have already donated to support my race training, it really motivates me to see how many people are supporting me in this challenge.
Thank YOU.

If you'd like to learn more about why I'm training for the half, or about my story, Please visit this site.

Hope. Love. Run.
Marathon Girl

Q: What time is it? A:Time to give back.

I am now registered for Boston's Run to Remember, which takes place Memorial Day weekend, 2011! I'm spending this month in pre-training for the race. This means I'm running regularly each week, logging at least ten miles, so when I begin training in early March, it's an easy transition. Having successfully trained for a half once before, I feel confident moving forward and saying I am running a race that is still four months away.

However, unlike last time, my commitment goes beyond just saying I'm running this half. I plan on making this race a statement, and the statement is this: not only did I survive, but with some help, I found a way to live a full life beyond cancer. Last year I wrote about celebrating my fourth cancerversary. This year's cancerversary is extra special because it's the holy grail year: Five. Years. Out.

What's the big deal with five, you ask? The big deal is that I was told that there was a 50% chance I would live to see five years from my diagnosis. There was a time I doubted I would live to graduate college, have a job, find someone who could love me, cancer and all...but on June 5, 2011 I will have outlived those dates, and will be as close to being ordained as 'cured' as I'll ever be.

I know it's only February, but I think at this point it's pretty safe to say I will be alive in four months. So I figured, what better way to celebrate this milestone than to run 13.1 miles and raise funds to support the organization that encouraged me to push my body after cancer?
I couldn't come up with anything I'd rather do to commemorate my five year cancerversary, so I'm running this race for First Descents. I feel forever grateful to them because the two week-long kayaking adventures I participated in with other young adult survivors were life-changing and have brought me to the positive place I am today.

So this is the big launch. I have opened my FirstGiving site for support. I encourage you to visit and at least watch the video posted there titled 'Giving Back'. It's a quick (under 4 minutes!) look at the post-treatment portion of my journey with cancer. If it moves you to do so, make a donation. If not, that's okay too, because just by watching, you're one more person who is aware of First Descents and can share it with a young adult who might benefit from it, should the opportunity arise.

Hope, Love, Run,
Marathon Girl

First Giving page
Direct to video