RACE WEEK!!

It's finally here.  It's race week.

I am just a mess of feelings this week.  I have tons that I have to get done for school before I leave and besides school I'm feeling nervous, excited, anxious, scared, worried and many other things.  I have worked really hard for this race but I definitely don't feel as prepared as I did before my first one.  With the injury I just wasn't able to get in the mileage that I was able to last time.  I also don't feel nearly as in shape as I did before my first.  Yes, I know, I can run 20 miles, how can I be out of shape?  But, I am.  Oh well, I can't focus on those things now because there is nothing I can do about it!

I had a rough running week last week recovering from my 20 miles the weekend before.  My hip has been bugging me and my knee has been hurting me.  I've just tried to stretch a lot, roll on my foam roller to try and keep knots out of my legs and do some massage on top of lots of icing!  That being said I've taken it easy running.  I didn't do as much as I would have liked last week and I went 4.5 yesterday which was a little rough.  Part of it being my hip and knee and part of it because I could feel all of the not so good for me food and drinks I had last weekend because my best friend Sarah Heinbigner was in town from California.  I'm thinking I'm going to take today off but am hoping I'll be able to do short runs tomorrow and Thursday and then 2 miles on Saturday just to move my body a little the day before the marathon.

FUNDRAISING!!!  I am getting so close to my goal!  $200 to go...come on guys!  If you haven't donated this is the time!  It is seriously such a great cause.  Even in the past 2 months I've had 2 friends have their pets go missing.  One found her little dog a week later and the other is still looking for her cat.  PAWS is a safe place for these poor animals that go missing.  Like I've always said, I know money is tight for most of my friends, but even $1, or $5 helps.  That's one less coffee from Starbucks, one less drink at the bar, or one less trip to McDonalds!  Please help me and homeless animals out! :)

I want to thank everyone who has already donated!  This being the first time I've ever really fundraised (besides for selling candy bars, magazine subscriptions, etc. in elementary school and what not) I've found it to be an amazing experience.  Not only because it has made me really push myself in training thinking about how I'm not just doing this for me but for a cause that is very important to me, and not just because I've been able to see the way that other people are passionate for the same cause, but because I've gotten to see the amazing support of family and friends that I am lucky enough to have.  It is truly touching to see a lot of these donations and people who are supporting me.  I don't think I would have been still planning on running this weekend if I didn't have that support.  This injury was not easy to come back from and I definitely cannot say that my knee is even close to 100%, but I know I'll be able to push my way through it and that is in big part because of your support, so thank you from the bottom of my heart.

I want to make sure to specifically thank those of you who have donated in the past few weeks: Amanda Bulman, Paul & Barb Morin, Corey Stone, Heather Sahr, my mom's clinic Flying Cloud Animal Hospital, Michele & Randy Knutson, Rachel Kay my fabulous roommate, Pat & Adrienne Morin, Kevin McDonough, Sharon Dibella, Jack & Sheila McDonough, Bill Hull, Rick Berken and Rick Schoeller.  Thank you so much!! It is greatly appreciated!

So one final push!!  I'll stop bugging ya'll for money after this week!  haha...no more annoying emails!

I'm extremely excited for the trip to Chicago!  I haven't seen my former roommate Sarah Pruitt in a whole YEAR!!!  That's craziness for us!  So we're going to have a fabulous time catching up and getting to spend time together.  Also both of our parents will be there.  I haven't seen her parents in over a year so I'm excited to see them!  Plus, our parents have a pretty darn good time together so I know they're looking forward to it as well!  One of my best friends from high school and her husband who live in Chicago are volunteering at the race so I'll get to see them on the course!  And they are being nice enough to take me in for the night on Monday for a little slumber party!  We also have family, Pat & Adrienne and Joe & Pam who we will hopefully get to see!!!  I'm thinking it is going to be a great weekend!  And I don't want to toot my own horn, but definitely a weekend I think both Pruitt and I deserve!!!  :)

So please, keep me and my beaten up body in your thoughts and prayers as there is a possibility I will need them!  But only positive thoughts from me from here on out!

Please visit my fundraising page to make your donation!
http://pawschicago.kintera.org/teampawschicago2011/kellymcdonough

Or, send checks made out to PAWS Chicago, w/Team PAWS 2011-Kelly McDonough in the memo line to me @ 10601 Zinran Circle, Bloomington, MN 55438 or send them directly to PAWS Chicago, Attn: Team PAWS, 1110 W. 35th St., Chicago, IL 60609.  If you send them directly to PAWS it is very important to make sure my name is in the memo line of the check, otherwise it might not get credited to my goal!

THANKS a MILLION!!  Emma sends lots of puppy kisses as well!  :)

Well, since the last time I posted I completed another 20 mile run!!...AND all by myself!!  It was not horrible like I expected it to be.  However, my water pack bugged me a lot during my first long run and gave me a really painful bruise on my back so I didn't want to bring it on my 20 miler.  I re-worked my route so that I could swing by my parents often enough to reload water and gu.  I went 6 miles at first then reloaded and went out for another 6.  I felt really pretty great after hitting 12!  But then when I hit 16 I started cramping really badly.  I think it was partly from the cold and partly from not hydrating enough.  I walked for about 2 minutes to do a gu and drink a good amount of water.  That helped a lot and once I started running again I was able to make it to 20!  It was a great accomplishment for me.  I didn't think I'd ever be able to do 20 miles before this marathon.  And now I've done it twice.  I think back to the pain I was in during July and all the doctors telling me there was no way I could do the Chicago marathon on October 9 and I am so proud of myself.  I would never have done it if I wasn't committed to doing this for PAWS Chicago.  I knew I was obligated to this and it has pushed me so hard and I'm thrilled to do it.  It is such a good cause, I urge you all to PLEASE help these animals and help me reach my goal!!  Donate at http://pawschicago.kintera.org/teampawschicago2011/kellymcdonough 

PLEASE & THANK YOU!!!

I only have 9 days to raise $400!!!  PLEASE HELP!!!

Click Here to Donate

20 MILES!!!

I did it!!  I completed my 20 mile run!!  Last Friday I went to KC for a wedding and my friend Pikul that I keep talking about was running her 20 miler with team in training so I decided to run with her because it would be easier with a group.  It was my first time doing a team run and I loved it!  Its so great to have the support of everyone, not to mention the water stops!  We started off nice and slow which is why I was able to go the full 20 miles!  It was a nice cool morning and I did really well at the beginning.  I did start having pain in my knee about 8 miles in when I was running down hill and my feet started hurting as well because I need new shoes.  My knee continued to bother me which concerned me, but not bad enough for me to stop!  I was feeling good at mile 15, Pikul and I both kind of picked up the pace and this was through a hilly part of the run.  Well, it was too early for my to speed up...about mile 18 I started struggling.  I held back a little and Pikul was great in keeping me positive and helping me continue!  However, I felt bad I was holding her back and finally after telling her numerous times to speed up and leave me going slow she sped up.  Pikul killed the run!  She did awesome!  And she really motivated me and I was able to finish.  I might have been in pain and running slow at the end and thinking I was gonna die the last 2 miles, but hey...I finished!!!  And I didn't walk which was my main goal!!

Before my first marathon 20 miles was the furthest I ran.  I feel like I need to do 1 more 20 mile run before the race, but I'm extremely nervous about doing it on my own.  My fabulous roommate Rachel has volunteered to rollerblade the 20 miles with me and I might take her up on that offer!  But I also might try to find a race or even just a running group here that I can do it with.

My weekend in KC was fabulous!  The run, the wedding, everything was great!  I got to spend some time with great friends which was so good!  I miss Kansas :(

Fundraising...less than a month to go!!!  Crunch time!!!  Please help support homeless dogs and cats by donating!  Visit my fundraising page: http://pawschicago.kintera.org/teampawschicago2011/kellymcdonough
I also would like to ask everyone to keep an old friend's cocker spaniel in your prayers.  He went through some intensive surgery Monday and needs your prayers and thoughts.

Renewed Hope & Brand New Confidence

I apologize for my lack of posting lately.  With summer coming to an end, moving into a new apartment and starting up my last year of law school, I just have not made the time to post!  But, I do have good news about my training!

Last weekend one of my best friends, Sarah "Pikul" Dyerson came up to Minnesota to visit.  It was her first time here and I was soooo happy to have her!  We had a great weekend which included some margaritas, the MN state fair (lots of deep fried food on a stick), and a run around the lake followed by brunch on the rooftop in Uptown.

Pikul is training for her second marathon right now as well and is in about the same place in her training that I should be in.  Pikul runs with LLS's Team in Training.  She has had much more technical training and instruction than I have had so talking with her about training is always very informative.  Throughout the weekend we talked about my running post-injury and both of our training.  Pikul shared with me some things that she has found help her and what not.  Heading out for our run, we planned on running around Lake Calhoun; 3 miles.  She is a much more conservative runner (yes, Pikul...conservative...not slow!) than I have been in the past.  She does a great job at starting off slow and conserving her energy to make sure she will have the energy to finish and hopefully to push herself harder at the end of her run.  So, I wanted to stick to her pace, start out slow.  Not only to just conserve my energy but to allow my body to warm up; something I had kind of forgotten about.  I also forgot how much easier it is to run with someone else.  We made it around the lake once and I was surprised we were already done with one lap, so we continued for a second!  I made it 6 miles without walking!  That is by far the furthest I have been able to run since my fall.  It felt AWESOME!!!  My legs were obviously a little fatigued, but my knee held up really well.  I did have pain after and made sure to ice and take anti-inflammatories.  But that run made my confidence improve so much...I actually feel like this marathon is doable and I won't be walking 10 miles of it!

After our run Pikul and I went to brunch on the rooftop @ the Cafeteria in Uptown and then I had to bring her to the airport :(

The next day I headed out for another run.  I was planning on going just 3 miles at my new pace, but it was going so well that I kept going.  I have to constantly remind myself to keep at the slower pace and I check my pace probably every minute or so which is annoying, but eventually I won't have to look as often, I'll just be able to feel it.  I made it 6 miles again!  I was so happy!  I definitely feel so much better and hopeful that this marathon might not be a horrible experience but a good one.  One in which I can be very proud of.  Running a marathon is in itself a great achievement; doing it after having 2 fractures in my knee, a slightly torn meniscus and cartilidge damage and missing 7 weeks of training is something I never thought I would be able to do.  I went out for a long run last Friday with the goal of running 12 miles.  Some people were concerned I was uping my mileage too quickly but I felt I could do it.  I wanted to challenge myself but promised I would listen to my body, and I did.  I made sure to hydrate and gu and I finished my 12 miles with an average pace of 11:30.  It's not what I would have thought my pace would be if you had asked me in May or June, but if you had asked me in July, I wouldn't have thought I would even have been able to run 12 miles yet!  My legs were fatigued afterwards, but the next day I wasn't nearly as sore as expected.  I did ice bath and ice a lot during the night.  So I am very happy and confidence in where I'm at.  And I am so excited to run the marathon with my old roommate Sarah Pruitt.  She and I haven't seen each other since last October so we're just looking forward to doing this together and aren't concerned with our time.

I will be going to KC this weekend for the beautiful Lauren Hutchison's wedding!!  I used to cheer with her at KU.  I am so excited to share her and Colin's day with them and to see lots of my great college friends!!!  It will be a crazy weekend.  But, Saturday morning Pikul has a 20 mile run with her team in training group and I am going to attempt to run it with them!  I know it seems like a HUGE jump in mileage, and that's because it is.  But I think that it is best to attempt this run with other people and with controlled training conditions.  I will have support of other people which always helps.  I am staying positive about my ability to do this run, but know that I will most definitely have to listen to my body and not push too far.  The last thing I would want to do is hurt myself further so I know that I might not make the whole 20 miles running, and that is fine with me.  I'm hoping I can make 18 @ least!  So, we'll see!  Wish me luck! :)

Fundraising...I need to thank my Grandpa, Terry McDonough and Patti and Jeff Sahr for recent donations.  Every dollar helps!  I'm a month out from race time and still have quite a bit to raise!  So any donations you can make would be greatly appreciated!  Visit my fundraising page and donate: http://pawschicago.kintera.org/teampawschicago2011/kellymcdonough or send a check made out to Paws Chicago with "Team Paws-Kelly McDonough" in the memo line to 10601 Zinran Circle, Bloomington, MN 55438 and I will send it on to the charity.


Thank you again everyone for your donations, prayers, and support!  

First run in 6 weeks

Well...I did it!  I got to actually hit the pavement for the first time in 6 weeks, since my fall.  I was so nervous, anxious and excited.  I woke up to a beautiful Minnesota morning: 65 degrees, zero humidity and sunny.  I was thrilled with the weather.  So, I set off.

My goal was to try to run (w/o walking) the first mile.  Then I wanted to run/walk to 4 miles.  I thought the first mile was do-able, but was a little hesitant about going 4.  I didn't know how my knee would hold up and knew if I was having pain I had to stop.  Well...I made it that first mile pain free...well at least my knee was pain free.  The rest of my body felt like a ton of bricks.  My legs felt like they were 100lbs each.  My breathing was out of control.  I felt like an obese woman who smoked a pack of cigarettes a day.  But I pushed and made the 1 mile...woohoo!  Pathetic that 9 weeks out from when I'm supposed to run 26.2 miles, I'm excited about running 1.  But, I continued to run till 1.5 and was having a little pain.  It wasn't sharp pains or anything really concerning.  It kind of felt like it was just getting used to the movement again.  I walked and ran off and on from then on till 4 miles.  I reached my goal!

I'm happy I was able to push myself to 4 miles regardless of having to switch between running and walking.  I think that will possibly be the case for a while while I'm trying to get back into it.  My breathing got better as I got into it but my legs were pretty heavy the whole run.  It was also pretty windy and the wind kept picking up throughout the run.  My Nike+ wristband was being really strange yesterday (because I haven't used it in so long: sad) so I am not sure what my pace was.  Before my fall I was usually between a 9:10-9:50 minute mile.  I think the first mile I did mostly in that pace but then I definitely slowed down a little.  I need to calibrate the wristband today so it can be accurate again.  Afterwards I felt pretty good.  My knee hurt a little bit, but not horribly.  I took an extremely cold ice bath after which I think helped with my soreness today!  I also iced 3 more times throughout the day to curb any swelling.

As I said, today I am going to calibrate my wristband so I'll just run an easy 1 mile and then possibly just walk for a little bit.  I want to let my legs rest a little bit.  I am sore today...I mean, my calves, quads, even my back and abs!  It's so sad how hard it is to get in shape and how easy it is to fall out of shape. But the good news is my knee feels pretty good!  So all in all the first attempt was a success! I am planning on doing 4 miles again tomorrow if my body feels ok and my knee seems like it can handle it.

I received my first donation from the family letters I sent out yesterday!  Thank you to Terry McDonough!  I really appreciate your thoughtfulness!  Hopefully this is just the beginning of donations from the family!  Thank you to everyone for your donations, thoughts, prayers, calls & texts!  Your support is so much more helpful than you think! 

http://pawschicago.kintera.org/teampawschicago2011/kellymcdonough

Dogs in the Courtroom??

http://www.nytimes.com/2011/08/09/nyregion/dog-helps-rape-victim-15-testify.html?partner=rss&emc=rss

I love this idea.  Here is just another example of how animals can help humans in such an awesome way.  The comfort that a dog can bring a person is amazing to me.  I know that personally, my little Emma can always cheer me up and is definitely comforting to me.  After a long, stressful day, the only thing I want to do is come home and snuggle up with her.

I do understand the possibility of the presence of a dog in the courtroom being unfair.  I recognize that this could be a problem, but overall, I think I believe that dogs who are trained therapy animals who can bring comfort to a victim who is testifying should be allowed in the court room.  If it allows a victim, especially a child victim to speak out, by all means, it should be allowed.  If jurors are instructed correctly on the presence of the dog I do not believe that the dogs presence would not cause that much of a problem.

What are your thoughts??

GOOD NEWS!!!--Woohoo!

I had my 3rd visit with my physical therapist last Wednesday.  My knee was feeling much better.  My range of motion had improved, my pain was extremely low, and I was able to water jog for 40 minutes pain free!  And so my physical therapist gave me the go ahead to try to run this week!  YES!!! I was thrilled when he told me that.  He said if I have any pain I have to stop immediately and I can't push myself too far and overdo it.  I also need to keep up with the exercises he gave me and icing.

I was hoping to go for a run today but I am pretty sore from some strength exercises and am having some pain in my knee so I decided to wait until tomorrow.  Today I am preparing by icing, taking anti-inflammatories and drinking tons of water so I'm hydrated tomorrow.  I am extremely excited, nervous, and anxious.  I'm really scared for 2 main reasons: 1) How is my knee going to hold up?  I'm terrified that I'm going to be in a lot of pain right away.  But, trying to think positive and praying that won't be the case.  2) I'm going to feel extremely out of shape.  Endurance wise and strength wise, I've lost a lot of both.  I seriously think that I'll be happy to make it 2 miles without dying.  If my knee is holding up, I'm hoping that I'll at least be able to run/walk for 4 miles.  But again, I don't want to push too hard too fast, so we'll see!

We're 9 weeks out from the marathon and I haven't run in 5 1/2 weeks.  That's a LONG LONG time in training.  So, I have to be really committed to this now to be able to be ready by October.  I am going to keep water jogging in my training for sure as it will allow me to log more miles without the stress on my knee.

Fundraising update:  Last week I wrote a letter to clients at my mom's clinic for her to post and hand out.  I'm hoping to get donations from that.  I've gotten one donation from an employee of hers so far.  I also mailed out 40 letters to our family and am hoping to get a substantial number of donations through the family.  Next step is sending letters/emails to our family friends and some of my parent's friends.  I am also going to post a flyer at school once classes start up again and have written letters to a few professors that I feel comfortable reaching out to.  I am also looking into hosting a happy hour at a bar that us law students frequent quite often! I received an extremely generous donation from a classmate, Brittany Lawon who has 2 cats, both of whom she rescued.  So thank you Brittany.  As always, I would appreciate any donations you are able to give: http://pawschicago.kintera.org/teampawschicago2011/kellymcdonough.  Thanks for your continued support!  I will update ya'll tomorrow after my run and let you know how it turns out!  Please think positive thoughts for me! :)

My Fundraising Progress

Click Here to Donate

Physical Therapy, Chiropractor and "Racing into Shape"

I got my 2nd opinion from a knee/sports specialist @ Tria Orthopedic last Monday.  He said pretty much the same thing as the first doctor.  Which really, I don't know what I even wanted him to say.  Surgery? No surgery, just wait out the pain?  I didn't know.  He was a little concerned it had been 4 weeks and I still had so much pain, but referred me to physical therapy and a LARGE dose of Advil daily.  He said if in 3-4 weeks I was still in the same amount of pain we would do another MRI and reassess our plan.  He did throw in there that he didn't think I would be able to run the full marathon in October.  I cringed when he said that, teared up, then push back the tears, cursed his words and decided to ignore his comment.

I went to my chiropractor the next day who is a miracle worker.  He suggested some homeopathic bone repair which supposedly heals fractures in 1/2 the normal time.  I said what the hell?  I'll try ANYTHING!  He realigned me and did some acupuncture and I was on my way.  I swam and water jogged.  I am still making it about 15 minutes water jogging and working on my swimming (which is kind of pathetic and quite a struggle still!).  My PT says I need to be able to water jog 40-45 minutes without pain before he'll put me back on the road.

Wednesday I had my first PT appointment.  I really like my physical therapist.  He knows what he's doing and is positive which is helping me stay positive!  He asked me in more of a statement than a question: "You haven't given up on running the full in October, have you?"  I said absolutely not!  That I won't give up on it and he said good!  He assessed my injury, we did a few easy exercises which he told me to do daily.  The exercises are so easy and I'm surprised at how difficult they are...not really for pain in my knee, but as a struggle with range of motion, flexibility and strength.  He thinks the range of motion is mainly from fluid in my knee which isn't allowing my movement.  Flexibility and strength is from the fall, and not using it.  It's amazing was you lose so quickly!  I did exercises that day and the next and woke up with sore quads on Friday which I thought was sad, but a good sign I was rebuilding my strength.  Friday I went back into my PT.  My range of motion has already improved a lot! We did ultrasound, massage, a little warm up for my range of motion and then I rode the bike.  I iced in this big brace type thing, "Turbo ice machine," and headed home.

Over the weekend I kept up with my exercises.  I am going to stick with my water jogging, swimming and bike riding this week and have a chiro appointment tomorrow, and PT on Wednesday.  I'm slowly getting more positive about the injury but am dying to get back on the road for real runs!

When I was in KC a few weeks back Sarah Dyerson gave me one of her Runner's World magazines.  I don't think she even realized that there was an article in it "Racing Into Shape," which followed a woman who gave birth and then trained for the Boston marathon in nine weeks.  Right now I'm about 10 weeks out from the marathon.  Makes me nervous but if I can build my strength and endurance through the things I'm doing now, I think I can make the marathon.  My pace will likely be slower than what I was wanting to run it in, but right now I just want to be able to participate and finish it on race day!  If I can do that I'll be thrilled.  The article gives 5 main tips: 1) Start short:  start with short runs, but at a faster pace to improve your fitness quicker; 2) Be realistic: Don't expect to reach your PR while training or competing in fitness-building races; 3) Forget the taper: in order to regain your fitness, you must still train hard during the week (to do this I will likely keep the biking, swimming and water jog in my training to allow my knee the low-impact workout while still regaining fitness); 4) Race sparingly: only participate in races every 2-3 weeks; 5) Time it right: if your goal race is a marathon, run a 1/2 3-4 weeks out.  Since the 1/2 is more about strength than speed, it will continue to improve your endurance while boosting your confident in your ability to run hard over a long distance.  It is going to be a challenge, but I need to stay positive and work extremely hard to make this happen!

It helps to remember that I am fundraising and doing this for helpless, homeless dogs & cats.  I committed to PAWS and will follow through, no matter how long it takes me to cross the finish line!  My fundraising is slowly, but surely creeping up.  I am about 35% to my goal so please help and donate!  Seriously, every $1 helps!  http://pawschicago.kintera.org/faf/donorReg/donorPledge.asp?ievent=451667&supid=322878735

Thank you Tom & Nancy Pruitt

I would like to thank Tom and Nancy Pruitt for their generous donation they made over the weekend!  It is greatly appreciated.  I lived with Tom and Nancy's daughter Sarah for 2 years in college and she is one of my very best friends!  Unfortunately she lives in Dallas so we don't get to see each other much, but  I am actually (hopefully) running the Chicago marathon with Sarah!  We are looking forward to a great time in Chicago...I actually think our parents are probably more excited for the weekend than Sarah and I as my parents, Jack & Sandi and Tom & Nancy tend to have quite a good time together :)

Thanks again guys!  Love and miss you!

First try at water jogging

Well...I attempted my first water jog/work out session this morning.  Yesterday I went out and got a water jogging belt.  I found a cool little combo set @ Dicks Sporting goods:

The belt is supposed to help you stay afloat in the deep end so you can run instead of having to tread water.  I have never water jogged, or water aerobics before except for when I cheered at KU and had access to the althetic training facilities and I would jog on the underwater treadmill.  I loved doing that!  My mom does physical therapy for dogs at her clinic and they have an underwater treadmill, I asked her if I could use it.  Haha, she doesn't know yet if she'll let me...so we'll see!  But anyways, I did a lot of research on water jogging and what the correct form is and what not.  

Thank you to our best family friends Sue and Dennis for letting me use their pool!  I went over this morning and started with a couple easy laps then put my belt on.  It is definitely interesting.  I was hoping to "jog" for 30 mins and swim for 15.  The jogging felt good at first, definitely awkward though.  It is something I will have to get used to.  I had to focus really hard on my form.  Jogging didn't get my endurance going as much as it would on dry land.  But I could feel it in my legs after a while.  I was only able to jog 15 minutes before I had to stop because I was having quite a bit of pain in my knee from the motion.  So I started swimming laps.  Damn...swimming laps is hard!!!!  Definitely a great workout and something I want to get into!  I did some real good swimming for about 30 minutes (with quite a few breaks to breathe!).  Swimming really works all my muscles and my endurance.  I was so tired!  I do need to work on my breathing while swimming, I think that's why I thought it was so hard!  But, I did enjoy it and I do feel like I got a good workout and will be a little sore tomorrow.

It felt so good to work my muscles after 3 weeks!!  I feel out of shape...but it felt great.  I am going to try and go tomorrow again if I'm not too sore.  It's been exactly 3 weeks since my fall.  I am still in and out of my brace.  I usually wear it when I leave the house to protect it, and at home I try to move it around a little so it doesn't totally tighten up.  I have my second opinion appointment with a knee/sports specialist on Monday...fingers crossed!

I hope everyone has a great weekend!  And...if you're able to save $5 this weekend and donate to my fundraising for PAWS, you will help a homeless dog or cat find a home!  Visit my page: http://pawschicago.kintera.org/teampawschicago2011/kellymcdonough

Craving a run and trying to stay positive

I got my MRI results last week.  I have 2 fractures in my knee, one is on the top of my fibula, cartilage damage and a slight tear in my meniscus.  The doctor did not suggest surgery at this time and said I should wait 10 weeks to see how it feels and if it is still bugging me to come in then and they would possibly do the surgery then.  I don't think he understands that I want all this to happen as quickly as possible.  The doctor also got very defensive when I asked for copies of my x-rays and MRI to bring to a doctor in MN.  He acted mad I was going to go to someone else, and he said I could come back to see him in a few weeks.  I don't think he grasped the fact that I live 400 miles away!  Oh well, I got the images burned onto a disk and will bring them to a knee/sports specialist here in MN where I have an appointment next Monday.  We'll see what the 2nd opinion is.

It's been almost 3 weeks since my fall.  The pain isn't as bad as it was so that's good.  It still hurts to walk normally, although I can stand the pain to walk almost normal.  Stairs are very painful as are other specific movements.  The swelling has gone way down.  These are all good things, but I still do have quite a bit of pain and am restricted in movement.  I would not be able to ride a bike or anything like that right now but I am hoping to start swimming and water jogging/aerobics this week.  I am dying not being able to run right now.  Even in the 110 degree heat index, I want to go for a run SOOOO badly!  It's really difficult since that is my alone time and my stress outlet.  I'm also struggling because I want to be losing weight right now.  I am trying to eat better but it is just much easier when you can add exercise into the equation.  Hopefully the water jogging will help.

But, I am trying to think positive and am hoping for the best possible outcome.

I am still fundraising for PAWS!  So as always, please visit my website and help the animals! http://pawschicago.kintera.org/teampawschicago2011/kellymcdonough

What I learned from babysitting 4 kids for 8 days...

After 16 days away from home, I'm finally back!  AND...I survived all 8 days babysitting 4 kids!

I had a great time in KC.  Traveling with my knee was difficult.  Especially the first flight since it had only been 2 days since my fall and my first 24 hours in the knee brace and on crutches.  It was actually kind of nice while flying since I got a wheelchair, got straight to the front of security without waiting in line and got an extended leg room seat!  Not to mention the flight attendant and I became BFF's and he gave me free wine the whole flight!  Once in KC I had so much fun seeing some GREAT friends from college.  Michael Raasch picked me up from the airport with my surprise...Sarah Pikul, sorry, Sarah Dyerson I mean (I still call her Pikul for her nickname)!!  We stopped by to see Jake Schermer at a pool party then went back to Pikul's and I got to see her husband Andrew Dyerson.  Then Pikul and I spent some time that day catching up which was fabulous!  The next day I got to see my old boss Christy Cowell Rinkol and her daughter Kayla Cowell and then saw Sarah Jacobs and Kerry Comisky.  On the 4th my old boss Christy had a pool party, then I saw Lyndsay Bettlach and later Henry Madera!  I got to see a lot of people that I miss in a very short amount of time!  Of course I wish I could have spent more time with them all and had more people I would have liked to see, but I was happy with what I got.  Seeing everyone really makes me realize how much I miss them all and how much I need to make more of an effort to stay in touch with them.  Life just moves too fast and gets too busy!  So I need to put in more of a conscious effort.

My week with the kids was great...a lot of work...but great!  I'm not going to lie, spending 8 days with 4 kids was probably the best form of birth control there is!  But, the kids are very well behaved and pretty self-efficient so it wasn't very hard.  Michael is 14, Lauren is 11, Brock is 9 and Jacob is 8.  The boys pretty much all entertain each other, and Lauren as well!  But the main things I learned during the week are:
1.  Kids are a constant cause of messes.  I felt like I was constantly cleaning and literally following right behind them picking things up!;
2.  4 kids eat A LOT of food!  I went to the grocery store probably 4 times during that week.  I tried to cook a lot so they ate healthy good meals, but sometimes I gave in and popped in the "chicken fries."  I did learn to grill too!  I'm convinced Michael lives off of toaster struddels.  I bought 2 value packs (12 struddels in each) and they were gone in 24 hours.  wowza!;

My first time grilling alone!  It was yummy!

3.  4 kids cost A LOT of $$$$$.  Going through the drive-through costs like $40 alone; and
4.  I still love kids...but 4 may be too many for me! :)
It was hard to leave the kids because I do truly love that family, but I was ready for a small break!  And, I have to say congratulations to their Mom, Stephanie and her boyfriend Evan, who got engaged while they were gone in Mexico that week!!  So happy for you two and wish you the very best!

Lauren & me at Jacob's baseball game

Jacob stepping up to bat...

...And a HIT! Go Jake!

The "bodacious bride!"

I headed to Chicago after KC for one of my best friend and her fiance's bachelorette/bachelor party weekend!  It was the perfect weekend.  The first night the guys and girls all went on a trolley around the city and then the second night the girls went to dinner, the Thunder from down under show (highlight of the weekend!) then the piano bar.  And who cares what the boys did haha!  Their last flings before the rings were fantastic!  Congrats to Amy Kasper & Justin Schaffer!  Can't wait for their wedding August 13!

Overall, it was a good 16 days!  But I was soooo happy to get home and see Emma!  That was too long for me to be away from her.  I am trying to get back into the swing of things and have made some appointments and am getting caught up with some work.

This summer has been going way too fast!

(Hopefully) Just a MINOR Setback...

Sorry I haven't gotten around to posting about my "long" run last week and my training the beginning of this week.  Part of the reason is because it hasn't happened.

As I told you last week, I was moving out of my apartment Wednesday and Thursday.  I had a really hard time finding guys who were willing to donate their muscles to me and help me get everything out of my apartment, which was on the 3rd floor.  Wednesday AM I ran 4 miles and felt really good the majority of the time.  I was not in pain, but it did get a little humid and hot for me at the end of the run and I felt a little dehydrated.  But overall, a very good run!  For the rest of the day I carried boxes up and down my 3 flights of stairs.  Woof...my legs were starting to feel a little dead!  Thank goodness one of my good guy friends Chris Anderson was nice enough to loan me his muscles and help me get some of my bigger furniture down.  I really appreciated his help!  I decided to cool it for the night @ around 8:30 and just rest.

Thursday AM I decided not to run as I was a little sore from moving the day before and knew I still had quite a few trips to make up and down the stairs.  I had a chiropractor appointment with the amazing Dr. Metcalf that morning.  This man is a miracle worker!  He works with a lot of the Gopher football players as well as with a lot of gymnasts.  I saw him 2 times a week towards the end of my training for my first marathon and I am convinced I would have had so much more pain had I not been seeing him!  On Thursday he did some acupuncture on my lower back along with stem treatments and stem treatments on my rock hard shoulders/upper back thanks to the stress I carry there.  He also realigned my body.  He said it was obvious I hadn't been in for a long time and he also asked if I had been training on lots of hills or stairs.  I told him about the move and he said he could tell from my knees and hips that I had done that.  Anyways...leaving the office and heading to finish the move, my body felt fabulous!

I moved some smaller stuff downstairs by myself and cleaned a little waiting for my friend Jackie to come over and help me move my bed down, when my landlord came in and said I only had an hour left before I had to be out, when I thought I had 6!  So, I started rushing.  In that rush I attempted to lift a box of my kitchen plates, bowls, etc. that I had marked "HEAVY" 3 or 4 times.  But, me being the stubborn person I am, I thought I could do it.  I got to the last flight of stairs when I got my shoe stuck on the carpet, my knee kept going, my foot stayed back and my leg/knee completely twisted underneath me with my foot about 3 steps highed than my knee.  Oh, and the box was on top of me, and I couldn't get it off.  Luckily a man heard the fall and came to my rescue.  He lifted the box off me and helped me up.  At first I was kind of in shock and I couldn't tell what hurt.  From my knee down was pretty much numb.  Then I kind of walked it off (or tried) and realized it was my knee that hurt the worst.  It definitely did not feel right.  But, I had to keep moving.  I knew I shouldn't but I had to get everything out.  Thanks to Jackie, the nice gentleman (who was a stranger by the way), and one of my neighbors, I got everything out like 4 hours later.  My knee got worse and worse when I would sit in the car to bring another load of stuff to my parents, and even worse everytime I went up and down the stairs.  I was miserable and depressed when I was done.  My main concern was my training and fundraising.

After working so hard and being totally bummed by my injury, I needed some R&R and someone to vent to.  Luckily, one of my best friends Lindsay Boelter had also had that kind of week.  So, we sat out on her deck, me with my leg up and a bag of ice glued to my knee, she grilled dinner for us and we had some cocktails and just unwound.  It was so nice.  It is amazing what time with a great friend can do for you.

I didn't sleep well at all due to the pain.  My mom took me into the ER the next afternoon because nothing else was open due to closing early for the holiday weekend.  I was swollen and in a lot of pain and couldn't walk much at all.  The ER took forever.  X-rays were negative, she said it felt a little unstable and said she wanted to brace it and put me on crutches.  She said I might feel great by Monday or it might take much longer.  She thought it was an LCL sprain.  When I told her I was training for a marathon she immediately told me to see a specialist the following Tuesday (the day after the 4th).  So, with my brace, crutches, and some awesome pain killers, I was on my way.

I left Saturday morning for KC.  I woke up extremely swollen...way worse than the day before (the picture doesn't do it justice).  I mean, I had no shape whatsoever in my leg.  It was just...fat.

And woof...is it fun to travel with that brace on (not)!!  And, to top it off, of course my bag was 61lbs and they wanted to charge me $75 extra, on top of the $15 I had already paid to check a bag at all!  So as I was trying to move all my shoes to my carry on and decide which toiletries I could throw away, another nice guy who worked for Frontier came up and ask me "What the heck I was doing?"  I told him it was too heavy and he was like ummm no.  I'm not charging you, let me take this for you and I'm calling you a wheelchair!  He was my hero that morning :)  So, I got wheeled to the front of security (nice), but had to get patted down thanks to the brace (not so nice).  But, I made it to KC and have had an amazing time with some of my great friends from college!  Makes me miss my friends seeing as most of them do not live in MN.  However, it does make seeing them that much better when it does happen!

By Pikul's orders, I did a lot of ice bathes.  They did make me feel better, usually for like 30 minutes at a time.

(You can sort of see the swelling too in some of these pictures).

I went into a specialist Tuesday as ordered.  Thanks so much to my best friend Sarah Pikul for driving me and sitting with me during the appointment (we had a great day despite my knee!). I'm not sure how I felt about him but he ordered an MRI and said there was a possibility of meniscus or other cartiledge tearing/damage.  So I got my MRI today and will get the results by the beginning of next week.  I'm still quite swollen and in a lot of pain.  This scares me but I am trying to stay positive.  He did say I can water jog in the pool, so I'm going to try that out tomorrow.

Thank you all for your thoughts and prayers and concern for me that you've expressed through calls, texts and facebook.  It really does mean a lot (even your evil comments Sarah Woodard!!!!!!!!).  I hope everyone had a fabulous 4th of July.  I am babysitting 4 kids in KC this week while their parents are out of town...it should make for some interesting blogposts, so stay tuned!  Also, I will let you know when I know the results of my MRI.

As always, please help support PAWS Chicago and their fight to save innocent animals:  Visit my page: http://pawschicago.kintera.org/teampawschicago2011/kellymcdonough

Shin Splints & Finding a Routine

Well this past week of training has been a slight struggle.  As I explained in my post last Wednesday, I'm struggling to get back into the training routine.  So that is definitely what I am focusing on this week!  Last Thursday on my run I started having really bad pain in my shins.  It felt like shin splints which I didn't have any problems with last time I trained.  I haven't had issues with shin splints since I was like 12 and in gymnastics.  I was supposed to run 4 miles but only made it a little more than 3 miles because I was in too much pain.  I went home and did some ice massage.  I started thinking that maybe I need new shoes.  So, when I go to KC I am going to go to Gary Gimbles running store with my best friend Pikul (who gets a discount there :) yay!) and try to find a new pair.  I was hoping that I wouldn't have to get new shoes until further on in my training, but that's alright.

Friday I was only supposed to run 2 miles which went alright, my shins still bothered me a little, but not as bad as the day before.  I did some yoga afterwards and drank tons of water and had a nice chicken and veggie dinner to prepare for my "long run" on Saturday which was only 5 miles but I still wanted to be prepared.

So, I woke up early on Saturday and got ready to run!  I felt great and was excited to get on my way.  Well...it was not great.  I really struggled.  I was not able to get into my zone.  I was out of breath and exhausted early on.  I was really bored and just could not stop thinking about how much I was struggling!  It was horrible!!  Then my shins started burning and aching at mile 1.5.  I was able to push myself until 3 miles then I had to walk a little bit.  I walked until 3.5 then ran one more mile and then had to stop.  I was in too much pain.  I was really disappointed in myself.  But I'm trying to stay positive as it is still early in my training.

I took Sunday off and did yoga yesterday to give myself a little break.  Today I ran my 3 miles as scheduled.  I was feeling a little nervous, but anxious to get it done and hoping to feel good after.  It actually went pretty well.  I hit a bit of a lull after about 1.5 miles but luckily right at that time my "power song," "Down with the sickness" can on and I pushed through and finished the second half of my run pretty easily!  My shins didn't bother me at all which I was really happy about.

This week is a busy one as the whole beginning of July will be.  I am moving out of my apartment tonight/tomorrow and back in with my parents for the month of July before moving into a new apartment in August with a friend from school.  I am excited about moving in with her, but I hate the hassle of moving!  On top of that, I leave for KC for 2 weeks on Saturday.  I will be babysitting for a little over a week for a family I babysat for while in school down there.  I am very excited to be down there and see some of my great friends that I don't get to see nearly enough!  I am going to have to work hard though and stay on track training.

Thank you again for your support!  As always, I would appreciate any donation you could give!  Visit my page: http://pawschicago.kintera.org/teampawschicago2011/kellymcdonough

My PAWS Fundraising...

Click Here to Donate

THANK YOU!

Those of you who have already donated:

Adina Florea: In honor of Lady and Mishka;
Amanda Armstrong;
David York;
Erika Nardi: In honor of their dog Zeek who was rescued from a no kill animal shelter;
Erin Williams: In honor of Sandy;
John Langer: In memory of Jake Langer;
Sarah Kirby;
Sarah Pikul;
Val Romberg: In memory of Robert, Lucy and Richard, "The best dogs ever!!";

Your donations were all so generous and greatly appreciated!!!  Thank you so much!

Welcome to McDonough's Miles!

Thanks for visiting my blog everyone!  I have been thinking about starting a blog for some time now but never actually got around to it.  Truthfully, I was also concerned about sounding stupid or having no one even read it.  But, I finally got motivated to start one so that my friends and family can follow along with my training and fundraising for the Chicago marathon coming up in October.  I am raising money (goal of $1000 or more) for PAWS for Chicago.  PAWS is the largest no-kill humane organization in Chicago.  I will post more information about the organization in the near future, but if you're curious now, here is a link to their "About PAWS Chicago" page: http://www.kintera.org/faf/home/ccp.asp?ievent=451667&lis=1&kntae451667=3EB3C098D85244719383340D3AA81DC6&ccp=69987.  Go ahead and visit the site and look around!

I got the idea of blogging about my training and fundraising from one of my very best friends Sarah Pikul (I guess it's Sarah Dyerson now :) just can't get used to it!).  Sarah blogged about her experiences training and fundraising for The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society's (LLS) Team in Training (TNT) last year.  She ran the Nike's Women's marathon in San Francisco last year.  She will be running the same marathon again this October and is fundraising again.  Visit her page and support her cause as well! http://pages.teamintraining.org/mid/nikesf11/sdyerson.  Anyways, I loved reading her posts about training and I thought it was a great way for her friends, family and donors to follow along with her up to the big day!  So thank you Sarah for the idea!

This will be my second full marathon (26.2 miles).  I ran Grandma's in Duluth, MN in June 2009 with 3 other girls.  However, I didn't run Grandma's for a charity, I just ran for myself.  I kind of regretted not running it for a charity once I was close to the race.  I figured I mine as well help people (or in this instance, animals) while I kill me body! haha.

I was in better shape when I started training for Grandma's than I am right now in the beginning of my training for Chicago which has proven to cause me a little struggle!  I kick myself everyday for letting myself get sooooo out of marathon shape...never again (I keep telling myself) will I allow myself to do that.  When I trained for Grandma's it was the last semester of my senior year @ KU.  I was busier than ever with 24 credit hours, 2 part-time jobs (one of which included traveling most weekends) and trying to enjoy my last little bit of Lawrence.  When I look back I don't know how I did it!  But I loved training, it made me feel better, healthier and believe it or not, made me much more productive!  The marathon went great, despite the temperature being a record high for Duluth that day @ 95 degrees!  Needless to say, they were not prepared for the heat!  Even the night before the weather said it would be about 75 degrees at noon.  Regardless, I ran the whole time so I was happy!  I finished in something like 4 hours and 45 minutes.  During my training I was running ~9:20 miles so I was hoping to finish in 4:30, but really just wanted to run the whole thing.  They did say that you should subtract ~30 minutes from your time because of the extreme heat that day.  Oh well, I was happy with that finish for my first marathon!  After the marathon I really just let myself go and enjoy my summer before law school.  Then, getting into law school didn't leave much time for running.  Ever since starting law school I really haven't been on my running game.  It's been hard to fit into my schedule and hard to stick to it.  I like to run in the morning, pretty much being the first thing I do in the mornings.  My first year of law school I would wake up to run and think that I should really go over my reading for class instead.  I missed a lot of runs.  I've been running off and on ever since...not good!

I'm really looking forward to be back in running and marathon shape!  Very excited!  I officially started training about a week and a half ago.  My longest run yet was only 4 miles, and this week my long run is 5 miles.  Most weeks I am going to do my long run on Friday mornings.  My training schedule (as of now), which is almost the same as the one I used for my first marathon, has me running 6 days a week.  Last time I usually just ran 5 days a week and I'm thinking I'll most likely do 5 days a week again with yoga on the 6th day.  I want to make sure I'm doing more yoga this time as I think it will help with injury prevention.  I will also (hopefully) do some strength training 2-3 days a week.  I wanna get my nice biceps back! haha :)

Going back to PAWS Chicago: I decided to run for this organization because of my love for animals.  Obviously, most of you (if not all of you), know how my little yorkie Emma is the love of my life!!!  Also, with a vet tech for a mother, I grew up with tons of animals.  Thinking of poor, helpless dogs and cats being put to sleep simply because no one has adopted them makes me so sad.  I have to turn the channel every time that commercial with Sarah McLachlan's "In the arms of an angel" and the animals in the shelters comes on.  It just breaks my heart.  I want to raise money in order to keep these animals alive and give them a safe, comfortable place to live while they wait for their perfect owners to come along and find them.  It is a cause that is near and dear to my heart and, I believe, many other's hearts.  So please, help me make a difference for these animals.

I will make postings about my training (hopefully) a couple times a week and post about my progress in fundraising.  I'll also blog about other things going on in my life and random thoughts!

I hope you all enjoy (and find this at least a little interesting!) and follow me along this experience!

Here is the link to my fundraising page: http://pawschicago.kintera.org/teampawschicago2011/kellymcdonough


Please visit and make a donation if you can!  Any little bit helps!  I would greatly appreciate it...and so would thousands of homeless, innocent dogs and cats!!!


I look forward to sharing this journey with all of you!