Sara Slattery's Journal

December 19, 2008 Entry (Posted December 29, 2008)

WARNING: This journal entry is not appropriate for those with a weak stomach!

I had a wonderful break this fall in Phoenix. Steve and I spent a month at my parents’ house catching up with family and friends we were not able to see over the past year. The fall weather in Phoenix is awesome and we really enjoyed being able to spend time doing things we can't normally do while we are training (riding the motorcycle, going to bed late, hitting balls at the batting cages and eating whatever we want). During our break we also made a trip to Midland, Michigan (the city my parents grew up), for a wedding. It was a great wedding and even more fun, because Steve had never been to Michigan and hadn't met a lot of my extended family. My Mom is the youngest of 10 and I have 27 first cousins so, the wedding was also a huge family reunion. It was beautiful fall weekend and Steve and I had a great time catching up.

After the month we headed back up to Mammoth to start getting in shape for the season. This was my first fall in Mammoth and I was really excited to get to run on the trails and enjoy some warmer weather there before the winter snow came. My first run back in Mammoth was an uphill tempo run. Uphill runs were my least favorite workouts last year and I was a little nervous for our first one; I had only been running for a little over week when I got up to Mammoth and most of my teammates had been back training for a while. The tempo actually ended up being a great run and probably one of my best uphill workouts I have done.

That night the guys were having poker night at the apartment Steve and I were staying at. All the girls decided to have dinner over at Amy Hastings and Julie Culley's (she was out training with our group for the month of November) apartment. We ended hanging out, and playing our version of poker. While I was there my stomach was feeling a little off. I thought maybe I had eaten too much and it wasn't settling well. I figured I should just drink some water and it would settle down. When I headed home at 11:30 pm my stomach was getting worse and I decided to go to bed to try and sleep it off. I woke up a few hours later with the chills and a fever of 102. My stomach was getting much worse; I felt like someone was stabbing me with a rusty knife. I could hardly get out of bed. Around 7:00 am Steve ran to the pharmacy and got me some Tylenol and ginger ale to bring my fever down and settle my stomach. I hadn't drunk much all night, and usually ginger ale feels good on an upset stomach. I took a sip, but felt worse.

I knew something wasn't right and I made Steve take me to urgent care to figure out what was going on. By the time we got to urgent care I could barely walk and felt really out of it. I ended up getting checked in and brought to a hospital room. We spoke to the doctors about my symptoms and what we needed to do. The doctor was not sure exactly what was going on. The symptoms I had could be a number of different things and they thought I should get a CAT scan to eliminate the guessing work. Before the scan I had to drink a liter of barium, flavored with Crystal Light, (a thick milky solution that cannot be masked by Crystal Light and definitely did not make my stomach feel any better). A few hours later and in much more pain, the doctor told me my scan was inconclusive. He found inflammation in my stomach cavity but could not tell where it was coming from. He said the only way to figure out what was going on was through laparoscopic surgery; a surgery where they make four small incisions and could look at everything in and around my stomach cavity with a small scope. He gave me the option of having the surgery in Mammoth or back Phoenix where my family is. Steve and my family were nervous about having the surgery in a small town, but I could not bear the thought of driving three hours to Reno and flying another two to Phoenix. I was in a lot of pain, and felt comfortable with the surgeon in Mammoth. I decided to have the surgery.

Two hours later and in much less pain I found out I had appendicitis, an inflamed appendix, which was leaking into my stomach cavity (see Picture 1 below). The surgeon removed my appendix (see Picture 2 below ) and made sure my spleen, ovaries, gallbladder and liver were all intact. I ended up spending the night at the hospital and slept surprisingly well. By 1:00 pm the next day I was able to go home.

The recovery from the surgery was surprisingly quick. The doctor told me I would be able to run within four to days. When he told me this, I was shocked; there was no way I would be able to do a normal run in four days if I could barely walk to the end of my hall in five minutes. But to my surprise the doctor was right. Each day I was feeling more and more like myself. Within five days I was able to do a 30 minute run and after two weeks I was back to pretty normal training. It is amazing how far modern medicine has come and how fast the body can heal. The only evidence of the surgery is four quarter inch scars on my stomach that are barely visible. Experiences like this appendectomy make me grateful and appreciative of my health and ability to push my body as hard as I do everyday in running. I am now back training and getting ready for the Aramco Houston Half-Marathon. It will be my first half-marathon, and I am really excited to run. This will be the longest race I have run, and the training for this race has really made me strong. I am looking forward to seeing what I can do on January 18.

Picture 1

Picture 2

October 8, 2008 Entry (Posted October 15, 2008)

I completed a long season of racing with my first U.S. title at the Women’s 8K Road Championships in Akron, Ohio. What I love about road races is the relaxed atmosphere and ability to actually see and meet the community you are racing in. During track season you spend the few days at the race in a hotel room, often thinking about your competition and awaiting your next meal at the hotel restaurant. Road races are great, because it is a much more relaxed atmosphere and you get to meet and see the community you are racing in. The race in Akron was really well organized with amazing community support. The athletes were treated to an awesome dinner at a local couple’s beautiful home with an amazing meal. It far surpassed a restaurant meal. We also got to meet the Mayor at a sponsor dinner the night before the race. What added to the fun weekend was racing well. After a rough and disappointing summer on the track I was really excited to end my season well with my first national title. Going into this race I had not been competing great, but I knew I was still very strong and fit and it was nice to be able to put everything together and race confidently and finish well.

I am now in Phoenix, Arizona, enjoying my two-week break from the long year of racing and traveling. This is the first season in my career I have really wanted to take a break. I needed the break this year much more mentally than physically. Since January Steve and I had been living out of two bags while we trained in Mammoth Lakes and San Diego with the Team Running USA California. Steve and I joined the group to have more structure in our training and a coach to help us focus and facilitate this. It was a big adjustment training with Terrence and the group. There was a lot more volume and intensity in our training. I worked my butt off and was the fittest I had ever been in my career. I was stronger and running workouts better than I ever had. I was also very focused on running well and doing everything right. However, my fitness and focus we not translating in my races. I didn’t understand why things were not coming together. I didn’t understand how I could be so fit yet be racing so poorly.

Through this up and down year of training and racing I learned a lot about myself. Living out of my bag for nine months showed me that I don’t make a very good nomad and need to have my own place to go to at the end of the day. Living in an apartment, dorm room or hotel every few weeks really became taxing on me. I never felt like I was at home and couldn’t relax. I really enjoy cooking, and entertaining, and I was not able to do this. It is difficult to make dinner for friends when you are sharing a dorm room without a kitchen. Not having these things made me feel one dimensional. All I had was running and it became the sole focus of my day. This allowed me to be very attentive to my training and helped me do all the little things right (eating well, sleeping, stretching, icing, massage etc). However, I started overanalyzing it all and it became draining. Focusing on all the little stuff is important and can make a difference in your training but I needed a better balance in my life. It made me realize I need a house, community and all the other things to be a better runner.

Ending the season well always makes you hungry to race and train again. While I am on my break I am looking forward to setting my goals for this next year. I am also excited to be back training with the group and finding a place I can call home for the next few years.

June 20, 2008 (Posted June 20, 2008)

Summer is finally here!! It is by far my favorite season of the year. Growing up in Phoenix, you have to love summer. I mean it's summer there three seasons of the year! Here in San Diego everyone is beginning to enjoy the summer season. Here are a few of my favorite things about summer:

1. Warm Weather - warm sunny days make you want to spend more time outside being active, and workouts feel so much better in the warm summer sun.

2. Ice Cream- During the summer, Ice Cream becomes another food group for me.

3. Going to the Beach- If I could, I would be happy spending my whole summer at the beach swimming, laying out, and people watching.

4. BBQ(Grilling)- BBQ dinners are my favorite! Especially since it means Steve is cooking.

5. The final reason why I love summer is that it is track season! Don't get me wrong, road races and cross-country are great, but there is no comparison to the excitement of track racing. This season didn't start out as exciting as I would have liked it to and had a few bumps in the road. I was really fatigued and was having trouble racing. I wasn't sure what was causing it and had a blood test and found that I was anemic. What a rookie mistake!! I hadn't been anemic since my first year in college. But, with the increase in intensity and volume this year and addition to being sick for a month this winter the amount of iron I was taking in the past wasn't enough to keep me from becoming anemic. Anyway, as soon as I found out I switched to a more absorbable source of iron and increased my intake. Within a few weeks I was feeling more like myself again, and I did my first race at the Reebok Grand Prix. Reebok was a solid race for me. I felt like I competed well, and made a few mistakes toward the end of the race. However, I felt like it woke up my body up and moved my training and fitness to another level. It made me very hungry to race again, and really made me look forward to the Trials.

April 21, 2008 (Posted April 23, 2008)

The past month and a half, Steve and I have put in our last stint of altitude training for the year. The first few weeks of our altitude training, we spent in Boulder checking up on our house and catching up on bills and housework. It was good to see all of our friends in Colorado and do some of our favorite runs there. One thing I miss about living in Boulder is our weekly dinner outing at the Dark Horse with Jorge and Ed Torres and a few or our other close friends. The Dark Horse is a Bar that serves great burgers, wings and sandwiches. They are most famous for their Starving Student Special, which works for most runners even if they are not students because they probably still get carded every time they go to the bar. The special includes a Burger, Fries and either a beer or soda for $4.25. A pretty awesome deal! Steve and I have been going weekly to the Dark Horse since our freshman year in college (1998 for Steve, 2000 for me), and were sad to hear that next year their lease will be finished and the bar is going to close after 33 years of business. The owners claim that land the bar sits on is worth more than the bar (although many could argue against that). I guess our timing was right with our move to Mammoth. Boulder just won't be the same without the Dark Horse!

Since I last wrote a journal, my younger sister Lindsey and her husband Matt, had their first child. A few weeks later in March, I was able to go see my new niece Jordan in Chicago. Lindsey and I are only a year and a half a part and have always been very close. Being the older sister, I always felt that it was my job to show her the ropes and guide her in all of her journeys while we were growing up. I was pretty nervous to see Lindsey, because I still felt it was my job to help her with any questions or concerns she was going to have with being a mother, and I had no idea what to tell her. I wasn't going to know what Jordan wanted when she was crying, how often you should feed her or what the best brand of diapers are. But, when I got there Lindsey didn't seem to need any help, and it is amazing to see my sister as a mother. Lindsey was so instinctual in taking care of Jordan. She knew exactly what Jordan wanted when she was crying and when to feed her and how to hold and nurture her. I know now when Steve and I have our own family, I will be looking to Lindsey for guidance and advise.

After my trip to Chicago, I spent the next month of training in Mammoth. I really enjoyed being back there again and getting in some good training for the spring. The weather was much warmer than the first part of the year we spent training there. Jen, Julia, and I had a lot of fun doing intervals together, and I am so grateful to have teammates to motivate and push me each day. I also enjoyed watching Deena and Kate get ready for the Trials. It is amazing how strong marathon training gets them, and its fun to see them progress.

We also spent Easter in Mammoth and Steve and I had a big Easter dinner at our condo for the team. Holidays are a big deal in my family. We always have a ton of great food and spend the whole day talking, playing games, and overeating. Each holiday seems to have a different meat prepared for dinner. At Thanksgiving, everyone prepares a Turkey. At Christmas many have turkey or a roast. And at Easter I thought everyone had ham. When I explained my excitement for Easter honey-glazed ham to my teammates they looked at me like I was crazy. "Ham on Easter?" Evidently, not everyone has ham on Easter, but that wasn't going to stop me from serving it at our Easter dinner in Mammoth. I prepared a brown sugar glazed Ham and Steve made a baked ziti and everyone prepared side dishes to go with dinner. We had a ton of food and a great day.

To break up my training a bit, I ran my first road race of the year at the Carlsbad 5K. I had a lot of fun at the race. If you haven't ever raced there before, Carlsbad is a beautiful city and Elite Racing does a great job of putting on the event. There is an awesome crowd cheering you on the whole way and the organizers put together a competitive field every year. It is amazing how many world records have been set on that course. As far as the 5K went, I felt okay with how I raced. I didn't go out with the leaders right away and they made a big gap on me in the first mile. I then ran in no mans land for most of the race and had a lot left at the end. I wasn't thrilled with the race but it was good to be back racing after being sick for a month. I also had a pretty high-volume week. Terrence didn't rest me much because I had missed some time being sick and we didn't want to compromise the training for the Cardinal 10K in a few weeks but wanted to get used to racing again. Overall, it was a great way to get back racing again.

I am now in San Diego, at the Olympic Training Center, until the Trials and I am loving every minute of it. The weather has been awesome and it is so great to be on the track again after months of doing intervals on the roads and trails in Mammoth. I am a track girl at heart and the rhythm of the track feels so great after months of slow intervals in Mammoth. I am excited to get the early track race season going, and really looking forward to the 10K at Stanford in a few weeks. I always enjoy running under the lights in Palo Alto. After traveling around the world to different races, I think it is probably the fastest track and best conditions for distance running anywhere. My goal is to get the A-Standard, and it looks like there are several other girls hoping to do the same thing. It should be a night full of great races!

Introductory Entry (Posted February 27, 2008)

I never thought I would be excited to say this but I am now a Californian. After seven years of living and training in Boulder, Colorado, Steve and I decided to join Team Running USA in Mammoth Lakes, California. It was very hard for us to leave, because we had a lot of great friends, teammates and memories in Boulder and loved living there. However, both of us needed a change. We both needed more structure to our training and racing. We wanted teammates and people to workout with and really needed a coach who could take us to a higher level in our running. Steve and I feel so lucky to have found that in Team Running USA in Mammoth Lakes. The team is great. I am really enjoying being able to train with so many talented, hard working and motivating people. Training is so much more fun when you have people there with you along the way and an inspiring coach to get you moving. Steve and I had been doing most of our training on our own the past few years and really missed that group environment.

On a less exciting or fun note, for the past three weeks, I have been trying to fight off a terrible bought of the flu that will not go away!! This has been the worst case of the flu I have ever had. I can honestly say I slept more hours the past week than I was awake. It started right after a 5K I ran at the UW indoor meet at the beginning of February. Steve had been sick before the meet and I think I got my immune system down after I raced and then picked up his flu. I was pretty sick for about a week and a half and started to feel better right before US XC and thought I would be okay going into the race. However, I think it was still with me, because I struggled to breath well in the race and just felt a bit off. I couldn't push my body when I needed to and felt like I could never really get going. I was pretty disappointed because I felt like I was in really good shape before I got sick and wanted to see how well I could perform. After the race, I felt much, much worse. My symptoms had moved my nose to my chest. I tried to be patient and rest, increase my vitamin C and zinc intake and let my body fight off the flu. However, it did not seem to be working. So, today I saw the doctor again and got a prescription that will hopefully take care of this dang thing once and for all!! I can't wait to get back into things again. I am really looking forward to putting in some good training. I can't wait for the outdoor season and all the races ahead!

But for now I am resting up and enjoying my last few sunny days in San Diego before we head up to the cold for some altitude training.