Training reaches tiring heights

It has been exactly two months since I started training for the

Orange County Marathon, scheduled for Jan. 8.

To date, I have logged more than 170 miles. That is like running

to Palm Springs and back. Until last week, the majority of my runs

have been in the early morning. This last week, my wife was out of

town, so I needed to juggle my schedule to get the kids off to school

each day.

To keep on track with the Cal Coast Track Club marathon training

program, my only choice was to run during the week after work. I

figured this was the perfect time to start pushing my daughter,

Paige, in her stroller. The runs with Paige were in the early evening

after work when the sun was still bright and the temperature warm.

This was the week when we experienced the strong Santa Ana winds.

Now, I love warm fall days with the Santa Ana winds blowing -- until

you have to go running. The triple combination of pushing Paige in

her stroller (65 pounds), the wind and the heat was enough to make me

melt. It was a reality check that pushing Paige is a lot different

than running on my own. The need to keep my hands on the stroller

really impacted my endurance and speed.

In the past two weeks, I have completed two long runs: 11 miles

and 12 miles, respectively. On each of these runs I have joined a

group of friends and completed different loops around the Back Bay.

With five large guys (some extra large, including yours truly)

running down the road, we looked like a human road block -- our group

definitely does not fit the mold of typical runners. This is the

first time any of us have attempted to run a marathon, and it shows.

I have not included Paige on a long run yet. I am still focused on

getting in better shape myself before I incorporate pushing Paige in

her stroller on a 10-mile-plus run. Right now, the distance that we

are running each week is starting to strain my joints and muscles.

I joke with friends that other than my feet, ankles, knees, hip

joints, calf muscles and hamstrings, I feel great. As long as I avoid

an injury that would interfere with my training, I don’t mind

enduring the pain.

I am learning that there is something unique about the feeling of

exerting yourself for more than two hours straight. I am starting to

understand the reference to the term “Runner’s High.” It is

definitely an endorphin rush to push yourself physically for an

extended period of time. It should be interesting to see how I feel

after pushing my daughter 26.2 miles.

* To learn more about Grant and Paige’s training you can visit

www.teamdunning.com. To learn more about UCP and the OC Marathon,

visit www.ucp-oc.org and www.ocmarathon.com.