Sunday, March 30, 2008

ONE MORE DAY!!!

Dear readers,
One More Day left in our MARCH = DVT Awareness Month 2nd Annual Auction!!!
Don't miss out in this great opportunity on scoring some great gear and help the National Alliance for Thrombosis and Thrombophilia - NATT. This is a great opportunity to help us in our mission to educate about blood clots and blood clotting disorders.

I hope that all of out there had a wonderful weekend.
Long run for me today... 20Miles all together at the Heart Mini Marathon venue in Cincinnati, OH. I started with the 5K at 9AM with Mrs. Clot Buster I followed that up with about 1.5K to the car from the start line to get going with my official participation in the 15K. I was able to get through the course in 1:07.00 for a pace of 7:12 per Mile (VERY SATISIFIED I have to say). Once I got done with the 15K, I kissed Mrs. Clot Buster, sucked down an energy gel and headed out for a third time to close things out with 10K just so that I could say that I did all of the available distances on this course 5K, 10K, and 15K!

So, it is time to packed in and get some rest.

DON'T FORGET TO PLACE YOUR BID!!!
You have until midnight tomorrow. DON'T MISS OUT!

Thanks for reading,

The Clot Buster

Tuesday, March 25, 2008

On I go with the training...

As part of the 3 run per week training program today I have the "speed run of the week." I've had all kinds of different drills to do during the Tuesday run. Today I have to throw down 5 x 1 Mile (1600 Meter) sprints, read as fast as you can..., with 400 Meters for recovery. I am not sure what pace I will be able to sustain but I will aim high for under 7 minute miles and see how it goes... Very likely that the first two, maybe even the first three, will be fast but I will decline as I go.


Considering that we have a "Wind Storm" going on outside at the moment I think that I will go on the trademill and hammer things out there. I appreciate having the control on the speed to push or ease off when I need to.


NOT MUCH TIME LEFT to place your bid for MARCH = DVT Awareness Month!
DON'T MISS THIS OPPORTUNITY TO SCORE NICE GEAR AND SUPPORT NATT'S MISSION TO EDCUCATE ABOUT BLOOD CLOTS AND BLOOD CLOTTING DISORDERS.
Mrs. Clot Buster keep in shape... She looks adorable with her pregnant belly. I LOVE IT!!! (If don't write for while is because my fingers have been broken and I am recovering...)
Thanks for reading,
The Clot Buster

Saturday, March 22, 2008

Done Early...

Thankfully I had Good Friday off from work so I was able to get my long run done yesterday instead of today. As I look outside the snow is falling and I am very glad that I was able to run yesterday even after I was hurting BIG TIME.

For the first time I ran 24 Miles in less than 24 hours. On Thursday I did 7.5Miles and then yesterday I slugged through 16.5. Towards the end there I was suffering... I even shed some tears as my legs were tired. Mentally I was fine but my quads were burning and screaming for me to stop. Although it was not very comfortable I am glad I did it yesterday instead of today with the snow falling. I don't how people up north deal with this stuff as snow keeps coming time after time. I really admire their dedication. Today surprisingly enough I don't feel too bad. It relatively hurts going up stairs but outside of that I can be pretty normal. I guess that I am starting to get in running shape... most notably I can tell when I ride on the trainer. For the first few minutes on the bike the legs don't seem to agree with the new protocol. But after a while we adjust and we are back to "normal" in the sense that I can pedal but not with the same power as when training for triathlons. Very interesting to see the adaptability of the human body. These type of transitions I enjoy watching a great deal.

DON'T FORGET TO MAKE PLANS TO PLACE A BID ON THE AUCTION WE HAVE GOING ON FOR DVT AWARENESS MONTH!!! All of the goods are nice products that any athlete should have!

HAPPY EASTER!!!

The Clot Buster

Tuesday, March 18, 2008

Quickly...

Soggy wet run on Saturday... I was in good shape until about 12 Miles in when it started to come down. Luckily I decided to modify my run and stay close to home as I saw on the radar the chance of rain increasing right before I left the house. Probably a good decision as I only had about 4 Miles to go home instead of the 10 or 8 I would have had if I was running the original route I had in mind.

I felt great during the time I ran. I can feel the training pushing me along to new boundries that I have not explore yet. I never thought that running 15+ Miles in one sitting would be like a walk in the park but in all honestly that distance goes by very easily. Now, I struggle a lot more when we get into more mileage like 20+ but the feeling is great to have legs develop to this point and of course the STOP THE CLOT inspiration that keeps me going.

What do you thin about this glasses? They are some of the latest offering from my good friends at DPM Sports. They look nice. I have not had the chance to try them on but YOU CAN if you decide to participate in the Clot Buster's DVT Awareness Month Auction. Take a chance on getting the cool gear and at the same time help NATT continue their work educating about blood clots and blood clotting disorders.

Thanks for reading,

The Clot Buster

Saturday, March 15, 2008

Heading out for 20 Miles in 5 Minutes!

Well, here we are last weekend I had it easy with 15 Miles today I have to go for 20 once more...

I hope that my legs can handle it... let me rectify that, I hope that my mind can handle it. I know my legs can but stay focused every step of the way is the challenging part.

Here is my route...for some reason I don't think that will be able to see any roses at the Park Of Roses at this time of the year. At least today I don't have to do this distance on the trademill even if I can get such a great photos...


I much rather be outside... so much easier to be able to handle the distance.

So, I am off to run. I better go otherwise the motivation will be even less in about 15 minutes...

If you know anyone intereseted in the items from the Auction LET THEM KNOW!!!

Thanks for reading,

The Clot Buster

Sunday, March 09, 2008

From 20 down to 15...



Well, in this DVT Awareness month of March the training continues...

From 20 Miles I went down to 15 Miles with big mileage during the week, Tuesday 7 Miles and 10 Miles on Thursday. But next weekend I am looking at 20 Miles once more. Unfortunately, yesterday I had to go through 15 Miles on the treadmill because over here in Columbus, OH we are buried under the white stuff. Hard to believe that it snowed more than 16 inches and the city is shut down. I don't think that Mrs. Clot Buster's car can get out because of the height of snow. I spent a pretty good amount of time pushing the snow around just to get enough space to get out. We will see tomorrow if she can leave...

The run on the treadmill was brutal. I was sweating all over the machine and I just could not wait for the distance to go through. I struggled to stay focused. I don't mind doing short distances on the machine and even some speed work but 15 Miles was a little bit too much to handle. I had to change clothes a couple of times as I was soaked even with a fan blowing full blast. The legs held up well as I was constantly changing speeds to make the miles go by faster. I pushed the pace as hard as I could but at times I had to take the foot off the gas pedal to save some for the end of the run. All things considered it was a great experience but not one I want to do again. I am very thrilled to be able to do it but I much rather take the polka-dots to run outside!

So, here we are another week gone and now I am that much closer to the main event in May. At the rate that I am going it will be here before I know it... I am surprised as to how well my body is holding up. When I first started this training I thought that I did not have a chance to go through the long runs without any issues..."Knock on wood" I hope that this streak continues...

Please keep BLOOD CLOTS and BLOOD CLOTTING DISORDERS in your mind this month of March. We need to be AWARE in order TO STOP THE CLOT!!!

Thanks for reading,

The Clot Buster

Thursday, March 06, 2008

BE AWARE IN MARCH - Let's STOP THE CLOT!

This is a very important month for all of us interesting in blood clots and blood clotting disorders. Don't let this month go by without letting someone about some of the numbers I pulled off from NATT's Website. We have a lot of work to do in terms of spreading the word. Let's use March as our spring board!
The Numbers are Staggering

Almost 900,000 Americans suffer from deep vein thrombosis (DVT) every year.
Of these, about 380,000 develop deep vein thrombosis (DVT)
Nearly 300,000 deaths per year.
Only 50% of those with DVT have symptoms, yet quick, effective treatment is critical
600,000 are affected annually by pulmonary embolism (PE).
Up to 25% of those patients with PE present with sudden death.
1 in 20 Americans are affected by hereditary thrombophillia – an inherited predisposition to blood clots.
52% of hospitalized adults are at risk of dangerous blood clots.
The recurrence rate of venous thomboembolism (VTE) is 30% over 10 years.

I have this avenue along with the triathlon racing and first attempt a marathon to spread the word. There are many avenues out there to get involved. If you need some ideas please let me know because together we can really make a difference as the numbers listed above should not be acceptable to anyone.

Thanks for reading,

The Clot Buster

Sunday, March 02, 2008

BE AWARE in MARCH!

DVT AWARENESS MONTH!
Dear Readers of the Clot Buster Blog,

Please don't forget that March is DVT (Deep Vein Thrombosis) Awareness Month. There is so much for us to learn about blood clots and blood clotting disorders. At the same time, there is plenty for us to do in terms of spreading the word and let people know about the dangers of blood clots and how they can come about without any warning.

Also, during this time I like to hear your story about your clotting episode. Although, I do this year around, this month especially, I like to focus on the positive aspects. About how it is possible to bounce back from a clot and return to your daily routine. Yes, your life changes dramatically but life continues and you can still do everything that you desire. If you want to share your story with me please send it on (email them to me polka40@hotmail.com). I believe that sharing your experience with others is a very powerful experience from which all us of can learn. Knowing about people going through blood clotting issues and knowing that it is possible to move on inspires me a great deal to continue my efforts to wear the polka-dots every chance that I get and let people know about NATT and what we are all about.

So, I started off March well with a solid 18 Mile run on 2 hours and 40 minutes. It was a very nice day out there with plenty of sunshine and very mild temperatures compared to other days in which I had to run. I would venture to say that it is getting easier to go at it for about 15 Miles after that I am starting to feel the pain and I have to start fighting to stay with it. But I am out there giving it a try. Hard to believe that March is already here, that means only two more months of training before the big day is here. The distance still scares me I have to confess but with 20 Miles under my belt once I am coming around the idea that I can do this thing. Who knows I may even start thinking about some "realistic" time goals...

So, BE AWARE in MARCH... DVT AWARENESS MONTH!!!

Thanks for reading,

The Clot Buster