Running Drama

Has anyone else ever had one of those days where nothing goes as planned?  I was originally supposed to get up at 6 am to start my run at the beach.  I decided a better plan would be to sleep in so that I was fully rested.  I woke up at 10:30 and then my husband and I headed towards the beach, the exit was totally packed so we decided it would be better to run at a different place.  We decided on Lake Miramar because it would be something new.  By the time we got to the lake it was noon.  Oh well I thought I need to do a long run today so I put on my hydration belt and started my run.  About two miles into the run my left ankle started hurting (that burning sensation I get when my shoes are bad).  I walked until the pain went away and started running again but it came back.  I told my husband we were going to have to get new shoes and he looked at me like I was insane.  I firmly explained that the only time I get this pain is when my shoes are worn out.  We go to Road Runner and come to find out my shoes are discontinued and there are no other Nike’s that are comparable to the one’s I had.  Soo instead I pick up a pair of comfortable Brooks shoes.  Basically I have to walk everywhere in these shoes in order to break them in for Sunday.  I really wanted to be able to say that I could run the full 13.1 miles before Sunday.  Now I have no idea what is going to go down on Sunday.  This blows.   

New PR!!!

So I woke up this morning and did not feel like running at all.  I was supposed to get up at 7:35 am but when my alarm went off, I turned it off and went right back to sleep.  I woke up at 10:30 am and decided I needed to stop being lazy and go for a run.  I drive all the way out to the Crowne Pointe Bike path and tell myself that I want to try for 10 miles today.  The last time I ran was a month ago.  I step out of the car and it starts sprinkling.  I tell myself you drove all the way out here, a little rain is not going to hurt you.  I started running and felt good for the first 6 miles.  The last four miles totally kicked my butt.

As I was running I was debating if I was going to do 6 miles or try for 10.  Then I remembered that RNR Marathon is in 12 weeks and that I need to get my butt in gear.  Then I remembered why I was doing this in the first place and started crying (as I am running).  Thank goodness for sunglasses.  Today five years ago my brother passed away.  Even now it still is really hard to think about how he should be here.  I don’t believe in divine interventions or any of those things.  As I was running I look over and notice that a little kid had left their teddy bear on the fence.  It reminded me of RADAR and made me smile because it felt like somehow Marcos was watching me at that moment.  Something in the universe was bringing me to that place so I could see that bear.  It totally made me happy on this normally unhappy day and made me try extra hard for 10 miles.  I didn’t make the 10 that I wanted (damn ass cramp) but after 3 hours I did end up running 9.75 miles which is pretty close.  I just need to stay consistent so that I can get used to running that long.  My breathing was fine, my feet just felt like they wanted to fall off.

Nine Mile Madness!!!

Awesome run day today.  I woke up today not really feeling like running.  My husband wanted to go out with me today and invited another one of his friends.  I told them that I run REALLY slow and they could feel free to go faster.  When we got to the place, they were not feeling the run either.  They asked me how far I was planning on running.  I said that I was shooting for 9 but we would see if that would happen.  We started the run and my husband and his friend start talking about the scenery.  I never talk during runs so found it a little hard to get in the zone.  Miles 1, 2 and 3 were really hard today.  Robot mode kicked in at mile 3.5 and stayed until mile 6.  Miles 6 through 9 were soo hard.  My feet hurt soo bad.  Average pace was around 17 minutes per mile.  Nike website was down so I don’t know what my exact splits were.  Only five more miles to go until the goal is reached.  Pretty excited!!!     

8 MILES!!!!

Woohoo!!! I actually ran 8 miles today. I have a few hot spots on my feet but overall I feel good. Miles 1-4 were awesome. Miles 5,6 and 7 were ok as my feet started to hurt so I could feel every single step. The last mile took forever. I must’ve really looked like I was dying towards the end because some random girl totally high-fived me. It was hilarious and made me smile. Overall I ran 8.02 miles in 2 hours and 11 minutes. In actuality it was a little less because I stopped for water twice. Soo excited!!! I am happy to update my little thermometer so here it is…

Took the plunge

I did it.  I went ahead and signed up for the San Diego Rock N Roll Half Marathon in June.  There is no turning back now.  I definitely have my work cut out for me.  I have to add an additional 6 miles to the 7 I have been able to run so far.  I CAN DO THIS!!!  Super excited but a little scared at the same time as this is going to be my very first half marathon.  My husband says that I am crazy but this is something that I really want to do.  Just wanted to share.

Change in plans (BOSU day)

Today I was supposed to attempt another run at Lake Murray but I decided to do something else because my knees feel a little weird.  They don’t hurt that much and they aren’t swollen they just feel like they are bruised on the inside or something.  The last thing I want to do is kill my knees at the beginning of training and then not be able to run in June.  I can almost hear the picketers in my knees saying “Hell no, we won’t go!!”.  LOL  Anyway I was reading up on it and found several articles that say strength and core training are supposed to help stabilize your knees during running.  I HATE doing core workouts but figured the last time I did one was back in October so it was time to try it again.

I busted out my BOSU and popped in the 30 minute workout video. My first thought was wow this is only 30 minutes I wonder if I will even get sweaty from this.  That was the biggest understatement of the year.  About 10 minutes into the video I am drenched in sweat and am shaking from trying to hold the muscles along with the exercises.  I actually almost feel as tired as I do post run right now which is crazy.  I am sure my stomach muscles are going to hate me tomorrow.

Since I am already having knee issues I have to change my plan of action and would appreciate some advice.  Originally I had intended to do two short hilly runs during the week and one long flat run on the weekend.  Because my knees are being finicky I am not really quite sure what is the best option.  Should I…

a) Do a short hilly run during the week, a short beach run and then the long flat run on the weekend?

Or…

b)Do a short hilly run during the week, core exercises during the week and then a long flat run on the weekend?

Any advice would be appreicated as I really want to make this half marathon happen this year.  Anyway I am starving so I need to grab something to eat.  Thanks for reading. 

Soo proud of myself!!!

Today I finally was able to run the entire length of Lake Murray by myself!!! I had done it once before back in September but that was only because I was running with my husband and my competitive nature would not let me stop even though I felt like I was dying. Since then I have tried at least four times unsuccessfully to run it alone.  Today I decided I would try it again.  I woke up early this morning (something I don’t normally do) and changed up my running playlist.  I have had the same songs in the same order for at least a year and a half.  Because you can skip over the ones you don’t want to hear, it has never bothered me.  Today I decided I would get rid of any song on the playlist I almost always skip over and replace it with something different.  Then I put all the slower songs in the beginning and the faster ones in the middle and end.  It was pretty weird to begin my run with a slower song but once I got used to it, it wasn’t that bad.

I was surprised at how much energy I had for my run today.  Mile 1 was ok (I wasn’t completely dying).  Miles 2, 3, and 4 were awesome!!! I spent most of the time people watching and was amazed that the run was going by so much faster.  When I hit mile 5 though I got super tired and it started getting warmer.  It seemed like every song was totally appropriate for the way I felt the entire run.  At the very end a fast Ska (probably spelled that wrong) song by Reel Big Fish came on and I still had energy so I decided to book it to the finish.  All in all I ran 5.52 miles in 1 hour 28 minutes with an average pace of 16.02 per mile.  I ended the run with a HUGE smile on my face.  We will see if I can do it again on Wednesday.  Right now I am tired and think I am going to take a nap.

Lake Murray kicked my butt today

Good morning everyone,

Hope everyone enjoyed their holiday season.  I plan on running the Rock N Roll Half Marathon in June and need to get on track with running on a consistent basis.  I was supposed to start on Monday but was really tired and just wanted to sleep in.  So my first official run of the year was today.  I went to Lake Murray which did not sound appealing at all because of the hills on the trail.  I didn’t get there until 11am so it was pretty warm (I think it was 86 degrees). Anyway I was already tired after mile 1.  Robot mode didn’t kick in until halfway into Mile 2.  About 2.75 miles my ankle started hurting for no reason.  Once I hit Mile 3 that went away.  On paper I was only supposed to run 4 miles but had wanted to push myself to running 4.25 (just a little bit more).  I ended up running 4.1 miles and had to stop because I was soo thirsty.  I was glad I got out there today but I literally felt soo tired after today’s run.

P.S.  This isn’t my cat.  I wanted to find a picture that captured how I felt post run and this one made me laugh so this was the winner. 

Happy Belated New Year!!!

I know this is a little late but I was having waay too much fun enjoying my holiday.  Even though I didn’t have a job this year I used that opportunity to get out there and run more.  I was completely excited to find that I ran a total of 160 miles this year and lost 13 lbs.  I know that doesn’t sound like much but given that my thyroid condition makes it difficult to lose weight, I will take it.  I got over my fear and ran two 5ks this year (one in September and November). I didn’t stop in either one and was able to improve my time for the second one.  I was able to break my overall distance record and run 7 miles stopping only for a quick water break.  Overall I would say it has been a great year.  I can’t wait to see what is in store for me in 2012!!!

Halfway there!!!

Had an amazing run today. I went to the Crown Pointe Bike Path and just decided that I was going to try to run 7 miles today. I had no time limit and I was just going to run until I got tired. Mile 1 and 2 went by ok. On mile 3, “robot mode” kicked in so I was feeling good. By mile 5, I started getting thirsty and I had to make a quick pit stop at the water fountain. When I reached mile 6, my feet started to hurt. The last mile took FOREVER. I was soo extremely happy when I heard my Ipod tell me that I reached 7 miles and my average pace was 17 minutes per mile (even though it took me two hours). I am halfway towards my goal of running 14 miles for the Rock N Roll Marathon in June. I am on a mission to really do it this year so am hoping to steadily improve my miles between now and then. My splits are below.

SPLITS
MILE TIME AVG. PACE
1 13:03 13’03″/mi
2 28:52 15’49″/mi
3 46:27 17’35″/mi
4 1:04:09 17’42″/mi
5 1:21:54 17’45″/mi
6 1:40:39 18’45″/mi
7 1:59:05 18’26″/mi

This shows my overall progress. I am super stoked right now!!!!