DaveO

Stroke Survivor - male
  • Posts

    30
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About DaveO

  • Birthday 06/02/1966

Shared Information

  • Stroke Anniversary (first stroke)
    04-12-2011
  • How did you find us?
    Google Search

Registration Information

  • First Name
    Dave
  • State
    MN

DaveO's Achievements

Associate Member

Associate Member (2/10)

  1. Happy Anniversary DaveO!

  2. Happy Anniversary DaveO!

  3. Happy Birthday DaveO!

  4. DaveO

    Marathon Sunday

    October 5th. Marathon Sunday. The Twin Cities Marathon. The most beautiful urban marathon. I trained all summer for this day. I knew I would finish the marathon. I wasn’t prepared for how hard the start would be. I stood waiting with thousands of other runners in Corral 1. The announcer asked for a show of hands if this was your first marathon. I raised my hand and soon found than I was one of the few in this corral running a marathon for the first time. I started to think for a moment that I didn’t belong here. Maybe I should have moved back to Corral 2 or 3 where most everyone else I knew was running. No, I earned my spot here because of my times in previous shorter races and that’s all that matters. There is no way I’m backing down from this challenge. I believe if you train for it, you can do it. The minutes seemed like hours waiting for the start of the race. This gave me too much time to think about where I been over the past three years. I thought back to my time in the hospital after I had my stroke. I thought about my family and friends. I thought about my doctors who approved me to compete today. I thought about the progress I made since last year's Marathon weekend It was time to begin. As I headed for the starting line, all that I’d been thinking about began to fade. I was focused on the race. I thought about all of the good advice I’d received during training. The best advice I received was to have fun. I wasn’t going to be concerned with my finishing time. I was going to have fun! Along the marathon route I high-fived everyone I could reach with their hand out. The spectators were incredible. They were everywhere. They shouted out encouraging words. I heard people saying: “looking strong”, “you can do it”, “nice mustache”, “you look so fast”. Around mile 22, I saw my family. They were all there. I gave them high-fives as I went by. Shortly after I passed my family, the race seemed just a little tougher. Sure, the last six miles are "slightly" up hill, but I trained running on hills. I tried to block the tired feeling with the encouraging words of the spectators. I knew I was slowing down, but I didn’t care. I was here to have fun. The miles passed slowly, 23, 24, 25. As I came over the final hill, the finish line was in sight. I kept my pace steady all the way through the finish line. I did it!
  5. Happy Birthday DaveO!

  6. DaveO

    My Personal Best

    This morning I completed my second consecutive 10 mile running race. It was the Twin Cities 10 mile race. We had perfect conditions for running. Temperatures in the mid-40’s and clear. I finished the race on 1 hour and 13 minutes. I averaged 7:24 minute miles. Compared to last year, I finished 11 minutes quicker! Next year, if I get my doctors approval, I plan to try to compete in the Twin Cities marathon. I know going form 10 miles to 26.2 is quite a jump. I also know that if I train for it there is nothing I can’t do . This year I ran on the Minnesota Stroke Association’s Act FAST run team. We had about 30 runners in the races this weekend. As a team, we raised almost $9,000. I know that this money will help my fellow survivors. Here is an article featuring me that was on the local news : http://www.myfoxtwincities.com/story/23606413/stroke-survivor-to-compete-in-tc-marathons-1st-awareness-team
  7. DaveO

    Going on the run

    I’m going on the run again. I gained entry into the Medtronic Twin Cities 10 mile race again this. I was one of the 1000 lucky finishers of the one mile race in May who was randomly selected for guaranteed entry into the 10 mile race later this year. I finished the one mile race in 6 minutes and 3 seconds. My goal was to get under 6 minutes. I could have made it in less than 6 minutes but I promised my neurologist that I wouldn’t push it while running this year. Race day is October 6th, 2013. In this year’s 10 mile race I’m running with the Act FAST run team sponsored by the Minnesota Stroke Association. My wife will run too if she gains entry to the race. We have a running coach who is working with us on weekends until the race. I’ve never had a running coach. Yesterday I ran 6 miles. Last year it took me until September to get to 6 miles. If I make it through this year with no injuries, my goal is to run the full Marathon next year. It’s a big jump from 10 miles to 26.2 but I know I can do it.
  8. Happy Birthday DaveO!

  9. Congrats Fred. Good luck on the next 9. God Bless!
  10. DaveO

    Ready To Run

    Spring is almost here! Soon it will be warm enough to begin another outdoor running season. This week Twin Cities in Motion posted a blog about my running season last year. https://www.tcmevents.org/blog/2013/03/05/184/feeling_like_an_athlete_again I did this story hoping to inspire others to get more active, running, walking, or wheeling. My first race of the year is the TC One Mile race in May. It all starts with the first mile. I’ve been in contact with the Minnesota Stroke Association about their ACT FAST Running Team. They plan to run participate in races around the Twin Cities throughout 2013. Keep moving!
  11. Welcome jslivon, You will find many friends on this site who are very helpful. Coming here has been a big part in my recovery. I hope your headache begins to fade and your memory gets better. My headaches lasted for what seemed like months after I stroked. My memory has stabilized, I lost many memories, but I'm making new ones every day. Give it some time. Dave.
  12. Welcome back Sue. Take it slow. Dave.
  13. DaveO

    Race Day

    This past Sunday was the day I trained all summer for. I followed a 70 day training schedule leading up to the Medtronic Ten mile race. It was the coldest day of the season. The temperature was about 28 degrees F. I took the train into Minneapolis arriving at 6:40 AM. I was in the 5th and final group to be released onto the course. It was a long wait in the dark cold watching the first 4 groups go. Finally it was time to go around sunrise. The run started slow because of the number of runners on the course. Around the 3 mile mark the runners started to spread out enough for me to pick up my pace. I knew I was running faster than I did anytime during training. It was incredible. There were people lining the streets cheering for the runners. Just after the 5 mile mark I saw my wife, children and parents on the roadside cheering me on. I got stronger as the race went on. As I approached the finish line I started to sprint. I finished the race in 1 hour 24 minutes and 57 seconds. That was good enough for 1831 place out of 7672 runners. That is an 8:30 minute per mile pace. While I was training I found that as the distance of the long run of the week increased, I have some pain in my right leg (my affected side). The pain has decreased in the days since the race. If the pain persists, I’ll get it checked out. I was not going to see a doctor before the race because I was afraid of the doctor telling me that I should not attempt the run. I had a free pain assessment at the time I picked up my race packet. I was told that because of my right side weakness, I was probably hitting the ground just a little differently that I did before my stroke. I definitely will get this checked out before I attempt my next race. I am starting to feel like an athlete again.
  14. DaveO

    6:42

    That was my time in the Medtronic One Mile Race in May. That is my personal best one mile time. It was also my first one mile race. I ran that race because 1000 finishers of that race are guaranteed entry into the 10 mile race on October 7 later this year. I was not one of the selected 1000 finishers so I had to apply to the lottery that is used to fill the remaining 7500 spots. Last week I received notification that I was selected to run the 10 mile race. My goal is to finish in less than 2 hours. I’ve been training since May. I’ve had some setbacks. I had what felt like a pulled muscle on my affected side. It was not like a usual pulled muscle. It came on gradually. At first I thought it was a cramp so I stopped running and stretched it out. That only made it worse. So I limped home and didn’t run again until it improved a couple of weeks later. I’m following a 70 day training schedule. Seventy days seems like a long way away but I know it will soon be here. I’m hoping for good weather on October 7th.
  15. Happy Birthday DaveO!