26.2 Miles to Cali

And I'm Back...

2011-10-05T06:40:00.000-07:00

Wow, so I've been gone for awhile..May 4th it appears. A lot has happened; this summer was full of family tragedies and celebrations, as well as personal tragedies and celebrations, and a lot of traveling throughout it all.

Of course, in typical me fashion, I did not train like I wanted to for the Nike Women's Marathon this year. I have been a lot better the last 3 weeks or so, and I feel like I have my running groove back. I'm going for runs semi consistently in the morning, and most evenings as well. While my longest so far has only been 6.5, I know I'll finish the marathon, and will beat last year's catastrophe!

On June 1st, there was a bunch of marathons and half marathons on sale, so here is what my current calendar looks like:

Oct 16th: Nike Women's Marathon

Nov 13th: San Antonio Rock-n-Roll Marathon

Jan 2012: Austin Half Marathon

Feb 2012: Austin Full Marathon

March 25: Dallas Rock-n-Roll Half Marathon

I hope to keep up better with blogging about it all!

Happy Wednesday!

3 T's of Miles

2011-05-04T05:28:00.000-07:00

I've been slacking... but I have gotten a couple short runs in via track, treadmill, and trails. Nothing big, a total of 7.5

Total Miles: 99/1000

Hitting the Road

2011-04-18T20:52:00.000-07:00

I am not putting stress on myself to run a certain distance on certain days. Right now, it's more important to just get moving consistently now. On Saturday, while T and a friend (my personal training buddy in fact!) flopped on the couch to watch Star Trek, I dragged my behind out with the dog and ran a 5K. It wasn't that fast, but it was solid and steady and I feel good doing it.

Yesterday, despite my best intentions, I did not make it to the gym. T and I did walk around the block twice, but that was the extent of it.

So today, after a 12 hour work day, off to the gym I went! I went on the treadmill for a super easy 3 mile jog while I watched an episode of No Ordinary Family. (I highly recommend if you haven't seen it.)

Total Mileage: 91.5/1000

3 more miles...

2011-04-13T04:27:00.000-07:00

At Special Olympics track practice last night, I ran/walked over 1.5 miles with some of the athletes. Afterward, I ran another 1.5... it's not a lot, but I need to build my base back up. :-)

My general plan for now is the following:
April: just start running and working on improving nutrition and hydrations
May: continue running and begin some basic core strength
June: start a formal running plan which incorporates cross training and strength training

Thoughts?

Total Mileage: 85.5

Registered for the Nike Women's Marathon!!!

2011-04-12T04:15:00.000-07:00

It's official.. I am doing the Nike Women's Marathon. I have just a few days over 6 months to get in shape for the big day on October 16th. I finally went to the gym for the first time in a long time on Sunday, did an easy 30 minutes on the elliptical and read by the pool. Not impressive, but it's something.

My plan between now and June (when my life becomes a little more manageable) is to start getting my base back up. I don't think I going to write a formal plan for that because I never seem to follow the plans and then I get frustrated! So I'm just going to concentrate on going to the gym more, and just getting my strength back up.

Mileage Update: T and I ran/walked a local 10K just for fun...
Total Mileage: 82.5/1000

Quick Mileage Update

2011-04-03T14:39:00.000-07:00

I did the Austin full marathon... adding another 26.2 plus a 10K... another 6.2. (Since in each I ran a little further than measured, I'm adding 32.5 to my total.)

I'm now at a grand total of: 76.5/1000.

Oh. Boy.

Running on Hold

2011-03-19T07:58:00.000-07:00

I am juggling too many balls... The past month or so has been tough for me. I'm struggling with trying to feel like I have any sort of control right now. In February, I spent 245 hours out of the house for work. My mom was in town for 3 days when it didn't work at all. This means that over the remaining 25 days, I was out of the house, on average, 9.8 hours EVERY day. This doesn't count the house I work on things for my business at home, which I would guess it at least 10 hours a week. (Should be more, but as you can see... I don't really have the hours!)

So I made some lists... On Hold, Low Priority, High Priority. Getting outside and general exercise are on the low priority until June. Specific run training is On Hold.

The main struggle I keep running into is I know exercising will help me feel better, but if it costs me 2 hours of sleep that I barely have is it worth it. Sleep or exercise... which is better for me right now? Luckily, my job is very movement based so it's not like I'm just sitting at a desk all day.

I am looking forward to June and beyond when I will have time to focus on running. I am doing the Nike Women's Marathon again, and this time I am going to be ready!!!

Beautiful Sunday Run

2011-02-07T04:17:00.000-08:00

Yesterday was a lazy Sunday. We had a "snow day" on Friday, so no work. (Meaning we got about an inch of snow on the ground.) I didn't do much that day. On Saturday, I worked most of the day, and took the dogs for a nice run/walk around the neighborhood. I did 4 miles total in about an hour... definitely more running than walking, but I walked fast!

Then came Sunday. I slept in until about 8:30, and then T and I lazed around the house for while. It was a nice crisp 59* when we went to the park so I could run. T played with the dogs, while I went on the trails. I wanted to do at least 7. I pulled off 10! Now, for those of you who are amazing at following training plans, this doesn't seem like a big deal. I am not one of those people. 10 continuous running miles is the most I have ever done outside of a race. I was so proud of myself. I did them slowly... finished in a little under 2 hours, but I did them. Woo hoo!

Also, I forgot about 2 miles I did at the gym before that last personal training session.

Total Mileage: 44/1000
(January: 30; February 14)

3M Half Marathon Race Report!

2011-01-31T06:08:00.000-08:00

Let me start with two facts: (1) Worst training/prep ever (2) I PR-ed.

Oh yeah.

One of my 2011 Fitness Goal was to run a sub-2:15 on a half in April. That was before I signed up for this half...so now I have the one in April to PR on!

So 1 goal accomplished! I finished with an exciting time of 2:13:44. I was so excited.

So fact 1, worse training ever. As I noted in my last post, allergies have been killing me. This Sunday is actually the first time I haven't fallen asleep on a weekend afternoon in 3 weeks. And I don't nap. I have felt awful, which means I did a whole 15 miles training this month, 2 of which I was walking on the treadmill. So 13 miles actually ran in January. Then to top it all of, yesterday contained a horrible headache, a 2 hour nap at 5pm, and general ickiness. I tried to relax and read in the evenings, and finally got hungry around 10:30pm. So the guy and I went to McDonald's. Carbo load anyone? I had fries and a cheeseburger, mainly because I really felt like I needed some iron.

Then the alarm went off at 5am. I hit snooze... and finally got out of bed at 5:17am. Magically, my head didn't hurt, and I felt okay. I made coffee and half an english muffin with almond butter (yum) and got ready to race. I changed my mind on my outfit, showered, and got ready to go.

I got there was time to spare... said hi to a friend pacing the 1:55 group, and stretched. I started strong about 7 minutes after the gun time. I felt good... it was 73 degree out, but overcast. The course is know as a PR course, with an overall downhill throughout. This doesn't mean there weren't some hills here and there, but it was nice. I hit a hunger wall a little before 8 and again after 11. Felt like I was running on empty. Luckily there were Powerade stops shortly, and I made it through.

When I hit 10 and realized I could hit 2:15, I pushed myself the most I could. Perhaps a little much, hence the wall at 11. But I rebounded before 12, and ran my hardest for the last 1.1 Wow, that felt good. I was SO proud of myself.

It's races like this that remind me why I want to keep running. :-)

Happy Week to You All!

Mileage: 28/1000

My Awesome New Customized Shoes

2011-01-30T18:22:00.000-08:00

One of my Christmas gifts from T was Nikes he designed himself just for me! Orange is my favorite color, and I'm a firm believer that if you have something custom, it and better be noticeable! And if you can't read what they say, the left shoe says, "Go Fast" and the right shoe says, "Laura." I LOVE them.

Allergies + Cold = Minimal Running

2011-01-23T06:51:00.000-08:00

Despite a great first week of 2011, allergies hit me, and I think a good ole cold as well. In the first week, I ran those 3 miles already mentioned, did an awesome 4 milers, a slow run/walk 3 miler, and some elliptical and biking at the gym.

This week I finally was able to get sufficient sleep to feel semi-okay, and went out for an evening jog on Thursday. I ended up doing 3 miles at a 9:47 pace which was exciting for me. Yesterday, I went for a short little over 2 miles at a leisurely pace. Then I came home, showered, and fell asleep. :-(

Having no energy is tough... I have a half marathon in one week. Oh boy. I'm not expecting to PR; I just want to make it through.

My friend and I are supposed to have the final personal training today. I did 4 of the 9 sessions with her... it was a nice kick in the butt to do more strength training. I also need to do more stretching.

Have a wonderful Sunday everyone; I'm off to make more tea!

Total Miles: 15/1000

2011 Fitness Goals

2011-01-02T15:31:00.000-08:00

This year my guy and I are really trying to focus on fitness, among other things. We are both big believers in everything in moderation, so we aren't going on any crazy strict diet, or exercise regime, but making a concerted effort to get back in shape, and do so together. My personal fitness goals are as follows:

* Set a PR in Austin Marathon on 2/20/11

* Run a sub 2:15 half on 4/16/2011

* Set a PR on a half or full marathon after the above

* Run a sub 55 min 10K

* Run 1000 miles (trying again after last year's miserable fail)

So far, I did 3 miles at the gym yesterday

Total Miles: 3

Personal Training

2010-12-22T03:56:00.000-08:00

My good friend, Ms. T and I, were at the gym. I have temporarily joined a second gym. Yes, goofy, but I get a great month to month deal through my employer. We were attempting a weight machine, when I made it go **Clang!** A trainer walked by and gave me a hard time about breaking the machine. We chat with him for awhile... new training, just got out of the Marines, and he told us to come do our free orientation with him.

So we did. And at the end of it, Ms. T had signed up for 9 personal training sessions with me as her sidekick! Ms. T has always struggled to get in shape (at least in the 5 years I've known her) and felt like this was the only way to ensure success. We had had success one other time when we did a boot camp together. At this gym, it doesn't cost any extra for me to tag along, so when I can, I will and just give her money towards the cost of that session.

We had our first session last night. Oh my gosh, I've lost a lot of strength. This will be good for me too! I love the idea of personal training and think I would really benefit from it... just not as much of a fan of the cost! It's fun doing with a friend as well. So this should help, since he is also going to function as an accountability buddy! We even have to do a food diary. Ms. T is doing the next two on her own while I'm out of town, and then I'll join up again.

I'm excited!

Marine Corp Marathon!

2010-11-22T08:26:00.000-08:00

Friday:
We at the airport Friday morning bright and early for a 5:30am flight. At the airport I ran into an old running buddy who asked if we were going to the rally? Rally? What rally? It turns out the Cobert/Stewart rally to restore sanity was going on in DC at the same time!

After T and I got there, we checked into the hotel and headed to the Expo. It was crazy and we picked up our turtleneck long sleeve black race shirts. We also picked up two Marine Corp Marathon Christmas ornaments for my Grandpa (a marine) and ourselves.

We were both exhausted we went for dinner at 4pm at my favorite Old Ebbitt's Grill.

We wandered back to the hotel, changed into bathing suits and fell asleep before we made it to the pool!!!

T's brother came in late, so the boys went to grab food while I continued to sleep.

Saturday:
We went to grab breakfast and head to Air and Space Smithsonian. We had a good time, and when we left the rally was in full swing! Silly us, we decided to walk through the rally just to see how it was. 45 minutes or so later, we made it across the mall, losing T's brother in the process!!! T's parents made it in at this point and we met them at the hotel and relaxed until dinner. We had the Organization for Autism Research dinner (we fundraised) which was delicious and really nice. I tried to go to bed early, but we got sucked into watching Titantic... finally falling asleep around midnight.

Sunday: Race Day!!!
We were up and out just a few minutes behind schedule. and went to catch the metro. It was running funny and so we arrived at the race station right at start time. By the time we walked the mile to the start line, people were still waiting to start. We started about a half hour after the first person. It was perfect weather, cool and sunny, and I started with sleeves on (that I bought at NWM!) We took it slow and did well up the first hill at Mile 3. T's brother had multiple surgery's back and February and should not have been running. I left T around mile 4 while he waited to check on his brother. (His brother ended up making it somewhere between the 10K and 15K mark) I just cruised on feeling good! I was worried about hurting my calf again, so at the 1/3 mark I began to run walk. The rest was gorgeous, and I loved almost all of it. The worst part was the 1.5 mile bridge that just wouldn't end. It was awful, and I walked all of it. The remaining 5-6 miles were AWESOME. I love it, and I finished strong! Being the Marine Corp Marathon, half of the last .2 was a straight up hill! According to my watch, I ran 26.5 miles in 5:34:51 for a 12:38 pace.

We then had a fantastic dinner and went to bed early!

Nike Women's Marathon 2010

2010-11-16T04:29:00.000-08:00

So finally, a race recap. It was an incredibly humbling experience. Let's look at the good, bad, and silver lining:

Good
* The energy was great in the beginning
* The first 10 miles were gorgeous; weather was perfect
* I powered up the big hills

Bad
* My hips and calves were so tight that I started walking around mile 11
* After running/walking for the next ~5 miles, my left calf started cramping like nothing else. I almost stumbled a few times
* I then had to walk the whole remaining 10 miles or so because my calf physically would not let me run
* The weather turned on me.. all along Ocean Highway it was cold and rainy... for the whole last 10 miles
* I finished with mild hyperthermia and was miserable
* The Facebook messages messed up and said I finished before it said I hit 21.7, so I missed my mom and T along the way. I saw no one :-(
* It took me 6 hours... my Garmin gave out at mile 25.15
* It took me so long they had run out of 2010 Tiffany's necklaces

Silver Linings
* Some nice guy around mile 25 with an umbrella walked with me for a quarter mile
* I got to eat all you can eat steamed crabs just a couple hours after! Yum!
* Because they ran out of 2010 necklaces, I got 2008's... and they are sending me 2010's!
* Because of the necklace incident, I have guaranteed entry into 2011's race, so I can REDEEM MYSELF!!

Bootie Buster!

2010-11-05T05:02:00.001-07:00

I'm participating in the Holiday Bootie Buster Challenge!

And I promise I will get my two marathon race reports up soon... it's back to the gym this weekend!

Never as much as I should...

2010-09-22T08:39:00.000-07:00

I have done a little running the first part of the month...

Gym: 4 miles, 2 miles, 2 miles =8

Neighborhood: 3, 7, 2 = 12

So 20 more miles... 220/1000

I finally had a great run the other night. The weather is cooling down, and I just jogged real slowly and did over 6 and then cool down walk with the other dog and T to total 7. It was awesome!!!

So little time left... starting to freak out.

I have a 16-20 miler with a friend scheduled for Sunday.

200 miles!

2010-09-02T08:35:00.000-07:00

Since the trip I've done a few runs... for a total of 24 more miles! I finally hit the 200 mark... oh boy. I'm quite away from my goal, and not very far from the marathon.

My goal for September is to run 100 miles. This is going to be tough given I'm gone two of the weekends, but I need to make it happen!

Today the plan is to run to the track, a little over a mile from my house and then do a track workout of 2 quick miles with .5 miles in between (so 3) and a cool down run/walk back for a grand total of 6.

2010-07-18T07:30:00.000-07:00

Successful morning run!!!

I got up nice and early, before 6am this morning and threw in some laundry and head out to one of our nice parks here. I did a solid 6 miles at just under a 10 min pace, walked for 10 minutes, stretched, then ran a mile in. So 7 miles before 8:30am. I love it!

Since the last post, I have done today's 7, a 5K (3), one 4 miler at the gym and one 3 miler at the gym. That's a grand total of 17!

Mileage Goal: 176/1000

Perhaps, I should make the goal 500 or 700 instead...

Quick Mileage Update

2010-07-05T10:30:00.000-07:00

Although I did set my goal at "running" 1000 miles, I am counting run walks and long fast walks my mom and I took together when I was home.

June 11: 4 miles
June 12: 6 miles
June 13: 2.5 miles
June 14: 3.5 miles
June 16: 8 miles
June 23: 3 miles
June 25: 4 miles
July 5: 3 miles

Yes, there are some giant gaps. I will address those later...

Mileage Goal: 159/1000

New 5K Time!

2010-06-03T07:57:00.000-07:00

I went to another one of the Sunstroke Series 5K races last night. My previous times have been just under 30 min, closer to 29 min, just under 29, and then last night... admist a raging down pour thunder and lightning storm I ROCKED it.

27:40. Oh. Yeah. Baby.

That's a 8:54 pace. I'm thrilled with myself, and remembered how much I love running in the rain!

I also got to feel what is was like to run close to max effort for a whole race. While my times varied just a little, I felt strong. Also, mile 3 was the fastest!!!

Other runs:
Last Thursday I did my own 5K then walked a tiny bit and jogged it out to 4 miles.
I was at a conference all weekend and manage to do a quick mile on the treadmill before workshops one day.

That's 4+1+3 = 8 more miles!

Mileage Goal: 125/1000

Keep the Miles Coming!

2010-05-25T05:05:00.000-07:00

I feel like I am finally in training again!!

Friday late afternoon, when it was 90* out, feels like 95*, I did a hot 5 miles at around a 10:30 pace. I was just excited to have done it and felt good!

Saturday... well, we blew off Bikram since it was gorgeous out and T and I went to eat dinner on the water. The deal w/ the roomie was we'd get up for her to do yoga at 8 and me to run 8 miles. I got up and did my 8 miles in two runs. I brought the noodle pup at first, but she didn't do so well. We did about 4.4, and then I went on my own for the remaining and did 3.7 to be safe. They were slow, but I did it!

Last night, my Garmin hadn't charged and I had had a little wine so I just ran a quick mile around the block.

14 more miles added on!

Mileage Goal: 117/1000

More days; More miles!

2010-05-21T05:47:00.001-07:00

So I got to my 5K late on Wednesday night, so no chip for me. I did have my trusty Garmin so I wasn't worried though. I finished the 5K at a 9:12 pace (better than last week!!!) and then jogged it out to get around 3.5 miles. That gets me to 101 miles for the year.

Last night, my roomie and I went out for a super easy jog. She is just getting back into running, so it was exciting that she ran 2 miles with me (and the pups) instead of walking! Go Roomie!

Mileage Goal: 103/1000

Today I finish work earlier than usual, so I hope to get a 4-5 mile run in again. Tomorrow I'm probably going to do Bikram Yoga with friends again and possibly an easy 2 miles. Sunday the goal is a long run (~8miles)

Let the training begin!

A Bunch of Little Updates

2010-05-18T03:59:00.000-07:00

So I am slowly getting into training. Working partially in public education, these next 3 weeks are going to be crazy and then life will slow down. Right now, I leave my house too early (before 7am usually) to have time for a morning run. During the summer, I won't have to leave until about 8:15 at the earliest. In my summer schedule I have also squeezed in my midday Fitness Pilates class at the gym that I love as much as possible. And no more Satuday work!

So I hope I can remember all the runs since the 30th. I'm sure I did a short one that day... say 2 miles. I know I did 3 at the gym before yoga one day. I began a Summer Sunstroke 5K series (every Wed at 7pm for 12 weeks) last week, so that's another 3.1. Last Friday, I had an awesome run where I didn't look at my watch until I finished and it was 5.3 at a solid 10min pace. The next morning I ran another 2miles. I'm sure there was at least one more run in there somewhere, but I can't remember. I will just give myself that .1 from tomorrow's 5K.

I'm at 97.5/1000! Haha.... I need to get moving on this goal. Literately!

Starting Training...

2010-04-30T09:30:00.000-07:00

The best way for me to actually get a run in is to not go home first! So I packed my running clothes, went to my last client, changed and ran at the golf course near them.

It was absolutely gorgeous out, humid, and a bit of a breeze. I hadn't run there before so I wasn't sure what I was up against. Turn out: HILLS! Tons of them... so I did about 3 miles (no Garmin) running and walked a little more than a mile probably.

Today I got a break and had a client cancel so I can fit in a run, extra work, and happy hour!

Mileage Goal: 82/1000

Two Marathons Two Weeks Apart

2010-04-26T11:07:00.000-07:00

Oops...

So T signed us up for the Marine Corp Marathon fund raising through the Organization for Autism Research. If you are interested in donating, please visit www.firstgiving.com/lauraperoutka
There's a link to T's page there as well!

It has been amazing to see old friend and coworkers who have come out of the woodwork and donated. :-D

Then just last week... Friday I believe, I got an email saying I had won the lottery and gotten an entry to the Nike Women's Marathon on San Francisco. Yep, the one where hot men in tuxes with silver platters give you Tiffany's jewelry as you cross the finish line!

Here's the kicker...
Nike Women's Marathon in San Francisco: October 17, 2010

Marine Corp Marathon in D.C. : October 31, 2010

Yep, that's right folks, just a mere two weeks and 3000 miles separating the two marathons.

I'm going to have to really train this time... ;-)

Jess at Run Girl Run Contest!

2010-04-18T07:06:00.001-07:00

Jess over at Run Girl Run is having a blog-aversary giveaway! It's good one too, some awesome shirts from Thriv. I've tried on there shirts before and they are SUPER comfortable! Check it out!

Marine Corp Marathon!!!

2010-04-18T06:24:00.000-07:00

As most know, the Marine Corp Marathon is a favorite of many. Registration fill up in less than a day. We missed registration. We had vaguely talked about doing it this year. Thursday afternoon, I get an emailing asking me to sponsor T for the Organization for Autism Research for the Marine Corp Marathon. A few minutes later, he forwarded me my registration as well!!!

So now to start training. Since people have to donate money to a charity dear to my heart in order for us to get a entry, I'm even more motivated to train properly! If you are interested in donating, please visit:

http://www.firstgiving.com/lauraperoutka

THANKS!

1st Trail Race

2010-04-18T06:23:00.001-07:00

Yesterday, T and I did our first trail race. Now T twisted his ankle some during the Cap10K and neglected to tell me he had it wrapped all week. He still went and signed up for the trail race with me. It was raining and muddy, and we decided just to have fun with it and bond. We ran some, we walked some, and overall enjoyed ourselves. I was SO tired the rest of the day and in bed before 10pm. It was an 11K and we think we ran a little over half of it, so I'm giving myself credit for 4 miles.

Mileage Goal: 79/1000

Cap10K Race Report!

2010-04-16T06:07:00.000-07:00

I woke up last Sunday with heavy legs. The right one even ached a little. Waiting for the race to start, I was a bit apprehensive. I hadn't really run in a week. The Cap10K is a BIG race! There are a few costume and over 20,000 runners and walkers. It's usually a fun time: bands every other mile, lots of interesting people watching. I have done this race every year I've lived in Austin.

Mile 1: 9:48: As anyone who has done a big race knows, the first mile is always a little slow given the crowds. This mile was actually faster than I would have thought. The first mile is a slight uphill to the capitol and around it with a little downhill then. I began to feel strong!

Mile 2: 9:30: There is still a big crowd and will be the entire race, but it wasn't as tightly packed as the first mile. This miles had some good up and down hills, but I was surprised when I saw Mile 2 all ready. I was feeling SO strong on the hills and just powering up them!

Mile 3: 9:42: This mile encompassed the last set of big old hills! There were a little tough, but I powered up them and used the flats as recovery. I hit the mile 3 marker and felt the urge to run faster even.

Mile 4: 9:03: So faster I did run! A good amount faster! This mile had just little slopes up and down and I was feeling good!!! I felt as if I should slow down and pace myself more but it just feel too right at that pace. I forgot how good it felt to find a nice fast pace.

Mile 5: 9:16: I was a little tired from that last mile and the ground was really uneven here which bothers that stubborn toe. I kept pushing knowing there wasn't that much left. Since I don't tend to stop for water on 10Ks I just kept moving along. This mile definitely felt like I was going slowing than 9:16, but apparently not!

Mile 6: 9:24: This was my hardest mile of it all. It's a gradual uphill to the bridge then over the bridge. I was really feeling it in the legs; they were tired! But I am not one to walk the last mile!!! Not after I had come this far feeling this good. I remembered back to last year and how it felt much worse then.

Final .31 (by the Garmin): 2:21, 7:40 pace: Yep, I kicked it. I LOVE sprinting it in at the end of a race. So the Garmin had me running an extra .21 for the race. I finished, guzzled a bottle of water, saw I was under an hour and my negative split and felt AWESOME!

Garmin Totals: .6.31 miles , 59:08 , 9:23 mile pace
Race Site: 6.2 miles , 59:04 , 9:31 mile pace.

I love racing!

To round out the Cap10K, I was done a doctors appointment earlier than planned and had about a half hour to kill. I ran 1.7 miles, doing the first mile fast around 8:30 and jogging the .7 before jumping in the shower to head back to work.

Mileage Goal: 75/1000

1 Mile at A Time!

2010-04-05T06:20:00.000-07:00

As I was typing the title, it seems I have used this title before... that says a lot!

Anyways, T's brother was in town this weekend. He had ACL surgery about 2 months ago and PT is going well. Since he said he could run a little, we ended up running the mile around the block.

In other not so fun news, just hiking, with occasionally 30 sec running with one of my clients, my toe was throbbing. I think I need to see an orthopedic.

Mileage Goal: 67/1000

Hungry All the Time

2010-03-31T04:41:00.000-07:00

Since the half on Saturday, I am hungry all day long! It starts pretty soon after waking up and I have trouble staying satiated. Oddly it wears off in the evening... just in time for dinner with T. He made steaks last night that I couldn't turn down though!

So perhaps I need to adjust my diet, or tweak something. All ideas are welcome!

Getting Back to the Gym

2010-03-31T04:37:00.000-07:00

The last two nights T and I are getting back into the gym routine. While we only work out for about 45 minutes it's still better than nothing. To just get the legs moving I biked an easy 5 miles on Monday and then stretched a ton.

Last night I headed for the treadmill! T has recently convinced me that it's best to set it to random, since it's never just flat outside. So I did a super slow 5mph at random, and did an easy 2.5. My toe started to really ache, and T has finished his weights, so I stopped and stretched.

Mileage Goals: 66/1000

Half Marathon Done!

2010-03-29T12:24:00.000-07:00

So in my usual style, I went into the race without really training. I tried out some new socks Thursday night and did an easy mile and a half to put me at 50.5/1000 miles so far. I discovered that thick socks and my feet do not get along! It's so comfy at first, then quickly my feet feel like they are suffocating!

Saturday morning the alarm failed to go off. My roomie, who was also running, left without even knocking on my door. I woke up at 6:05 and hauled to try and make it to the shuttle stop at 6:45... We got there at 6:47. Doh. Luckily, one of the race coordinators was super nice and let me ride with him and I got dropped off right at the start line!

So this was the Zooma half... by far the hardest half I have done (I've only done three but still!) It was WAY harder than SF. The first 7-8 miles were just up and down hills, no real flats at all. Then some little hills, and then the last 2.5 is curving through a flat golf course. That means tiny lanes with lots of people and tons of tight turns. It was miserable. A little before mile 8 my knee started to lock. Not wanting to push it I switched to run/walking at mile 8.

I finished in just shy of 2:26... :-( I'm not super happy, but I still finished. My usual half time is 2:17. Next time...

So of course; despite being MISERABLE, I spent last night looking up other races. There is an 11K trail race nearby in about 3 weeks which would be fun to try! I have a 10K in two weeks. And there is also a 10K in 4 weeks.

It's funny how a half marathon doesn't seem that big of a deal anymore... even though I didn't run it all this time...

Mileage Goal: 63.5/1000

Foot Go Numb

2010-03-15T19:49:00.000-07:00

I went out for a run this afternoon since my last client was sick. I was feeling good and moving fast for me. The first mile was 9:11, then 9:32, then 10:07. It was a hilly route especially the last mile. Then my foot started to go numb. Now my toe goes numb; I'm used to that. But usually not my entire foot. I think it had to do with some big uphills and downhills where I was running on the balls of my feet mainly. Anyways, I walked a little after about 3.75 and tried running for a block or two after a big hill, but my foot was one big numb block. It felt like I was wearing ski boats! Even after walking half a mile it was barely started to come "un-numb". So I went to Carrabba's and they let me call T, and he came and picked me up. So I'm counting it as 3.5 miles.

So mileage count: 49/1000

Missing my old running buddy

2010-03-15T08:47:00.000-07:00

Last week my old roommate and running buddy, E, was back in town. It was so great to see her and we managed to get a few runs in together!

On Thursday, I ran a total of 5.5 miles... I did a a quick mile in the morning, then did ~1.5 waiting for her at the trail, then we did another 3 together. Wednesday and Friday were 12 hour work days, and T and I slept in on Saturday so I didn't have time for a run before work. As soon as I was done work we headed off to see his family about 2 hours away for Saturday and Sunday.

I have another 12 hour day today, so I'm not sure about a run... still have that sore throat too. But tomorrow I am done early and will definitely get a good run in and hopefully the gym too!

Mileage Goal: 45.5/1000

Another 4 Miles!

2010-03-10T05:15:00.001-08:00

Last night one of my old roommates who is visited went running with me. She had already done 4.5, but went with me for another 3. We probably would have done another mile, but her stomach was not happy with her so we walked the last mile.

Then my other roommate, who is not a runner, but trying to get in shape wanted to go for a short 1 mile jog around the house, so I joined.

Slowly getting the mileage up!

Mileage Goal: 40/1000 = 4%!

(I know we are about 20% through the year...gotta pick it up!)

3 more down...

2010-03-09T15:09:00.000-08:00

T and I headed to the gym last night... I thought about trying a yoga class, but just ran instead. I did a solid 3 (10 min pace) then some good stretching, abs, and legs. All in all a semi success....

We're off to the gym again tomorrow... I need to start upping the mileage soon! Next week is much lighter, so hopefully!

Mileage Goal: 35/1000

Funny Hips & Legs + short runs

2010-03-08T06:25:00.000-08:00

I have been slacking on the running... it's probably been 2-3 weeks since my last run. It's pathetic I know! It's been a whirlwind of starting with 3 new clients, and one new contract position (without dropping anything) a semi unschedule quick trip that threw scheduling all off, and generally not feeling so well.

Still. I have 19 days until the half and need to get my butt in gear!

Friday, I went to see a PT about some other issues. I had mentioned that we have uneven hips in the family and perhaps that might have to do with the other issue. So she felt my hips and said, 'Oh! Something's not right." Basically, my right hip rotates forward; when she makes them even I feel like i'm pointing right a little. And apparently, my right leg is 1/2 longer than my left... go figure!

So Saturday, T went off to work briefly, and i went out running. The Garmin was having trouble getting a signal, but I ran a good 3 miles and walked 1. My right foot was hurting in a new way...

Sunday, I was sadly sore and went off to the gym in the afternoon. I ran an easy 1 mile, then did a bunch of stretching and lunges and abs, which felt good. Need to get a couple miles in this evening. I finish work early today so I should have no excuse! I also need to get new running shoes...

Mileage Goal: 32/1000

Saturday Yes... Sunday No

2010-02-08T11:55:00.000-08:00

Saturday I got up with T a little after 6am. While he left for work, I putted around a little watching SuperNanny and working on a report until the sun came up. Then I headed out and did a nice slow 3.25 mile run around the neighborhood. While it was slow, I was happy to have done it.

The rest of Saturday was busy... I worked from 9:30-4:45, then went off to scrapbook for the night.

Sunday I woke up feeling miserable... my throat hurt and I could not stop sneezing. After lots of medication, I felt just well enough to run a couple of quick errands with T then curl up on the couch. Needless to say the 7-8 mile run did not happen.

Tonight I am babysitting right after work until 11pm or so, so I won't get to run today either.

So tomorrow... I need to do some major make up running!

3 Miles: Not as Planned

2010-02-05T19:40:00.000-08:00

After work yesterday I met T at the gym with the plan to do 3 miles on the treadmill. I had not had a great day and was just generally grumpy. My legs felt tight and I wanted to do anything but run. So I trudged through a mile, then we stretched and headed to the pool. There we played. We played catch, we raced down water slides (yes, my gym does rock), we play catch while sliding down water slides! I needed play time :-)

So today... I had to do the remaining 2 miles. I got home, changed, and headed out quickly before dinner. I did 1.75 in 16 minutes for a 9:04 pace. The Garmin wasn't working right and only had me recorded at .72 miles, so I had to google map it.

I'm going to count that as 3 and just add a little onto tomorrow's 3 miler. T is working the day shift, so he should be out of the house by 6:15am. I have to leave for work at 9am, so that should give me plenty of time to run 3.25 and have time to prep for the day. I'll get next week's running plan hammered out this weekend as well.

Mileage Goal: 25/1000

Interval Success!

2010-02-02T18:46:00.000-08:00

I went to the gym tonight with the goal of doing 7 X 400s at an 8mi mile pace. That's 2 minutes per 400. I gave myself a minute walking work up and 1 minute intervals between each 400. I walked the intervals at a 3.5mph pace. I wasn't sure if I could do it, but I was determined to give it a shot!

And guess what?!

I DID IT! It was awesome :-) After, I jogged out an easy remained 400m to make it an even 2 miles run. (I did a total of 2.5 with the walking intervals)

Tomorrow I just have the Fitness Pilates on the schedule :-) Maybe I'll fit in a walk with the puppies

Mileage Goal: 22/1000

4 down!

2010-02-02T10:09:00.000-08:00

I headed to the gym after work last night and had just enough time to get in 2.5 quick-ish miles before the Core class I wanted to try started. I finished in 24 minutes for a 9:36 pace.

The Core class was okay; I liked the fitness pilates a little better, but it was just 30 minutes. After, I dragged myself to the treadmill to do another 1.5 slow miles (12:00min/mile pace) to finish up the 4 miles I had planned.

Mileage Goals: 20/1000

Half Marathon Training Plan

2010-02-01T05:36:00.001-08:00

I have 8 weeks until my half marathon and I really need a plan. I have semi used Hal Higdon in the past and I'm a fan! Given that, I am going to use (and just slightly modify for my schedule) his intermediate half marathon training plan.

Today: 4mi run
Tuesday: 7 X 400 at 5K pace
Wednesday: Fitness Pilates (unless I have a meeting, then just stretching at home)
Thursday: 3 mi run + strength
Friday: rest, or strength
Saturday: 3 miles
Sunday: 8 miles

Made it!

2010-01-31T19:55:00.000-08:00

I made it to the gym today... did a good 3 miles on the treadmill. I ran hard and I felt strong which is good. The first minute I was just walking as I untangled my headphones. Despite that, I still finished all 3 in about 28:30. I kept realizing I was taking smaller steps so I could take more, so I kept upping the pace and just making my stride a little wider. Felt great!!! :-)

I forget sometimes how great a good run can feel.

Here's to another 3 or maybe 4 tomorrow!

Mileage Goal: 16/1000

Hiking, but no Running

2010-01-31T14:53:00.001-08:00

So yesterday, despite my best intentions to make it to the gym, the lure of Target and having to clean the house before people came over led to no gym or run for me.

However, I do respite care with a little boy and we did go hiking for 3 miles. It's better than nothing I guess.

I'm at Starbucks working now, but as soon as I leave it's straight to the gym! I really need to get cracking on that mileage goal and half marathon training!

Quick Update from Roatan, Honduras!

2010-01-25T07:57:00.000-08:00

Hi from Roatan!

Just a quick update... the Thursday before we left, I went for a 3 miler and finished at a 9:36 pace. I was excited. I also LOVE my Garmin watch! It's just too cool.

We brought it with us and on Friday we walked over 3 miles around town.

We'll be back to the States tomorrow night and regular life resumes on Wednesday. It's so gorgeous here; I'll miss it!

Mileage Goal: 13/1000

Another 2 Miles & New Fitness Class

2010-01-21T04:52:00.001-08:00

I went the gym after work yesterday and did 2 miles at a 10 minute pace. Afterward, I did an hour long Fitness Pilates class.

I have never done Pilates before... and at least this class was 45 minutes of Abs, 10 legs, and 5 stretching. Ouch! But I'm glad I did it, and I want to do it again. It''s offered most evenings at the gym at a time I can make.

Tonight around midnight, we drive to the airport in a city about 2 hours away to catch our 4:15am flight to Roatan, Honduras!!! We have our quiet little beach place reserved and we're going to dive, and relax. I'm super excited to have this time with T. We need this :-)

Mileage Goal: 10/1000 (1%!)

1 mile at a time

2010-01-19T08:43:00.000-08:00

I woke up this morning and took the NutPuppy out for a quick 1 miler around the block. Just over 10 minute mile...

Sadly, even with a big vacation coming on Friday, I think I'm sick. Slight fever, just generally snotty...

The scuba lessons over the weekend probably didn't help. Due to the scuba lessons, which left me exhausted, I didn't run and just counted scuba as cross training.

One day I won't feel stretched beyond my limit all the time!

Mileage Goal: 8/1000

Morning Run!

2010-01-15T07:00:00.000-08:00

I got up the 2nd time the alarm went off (instead of 45 minutes after the second alarm like I have been doing) and had just enough time to do a quick little mile around the block with the puppy. Running with the puppy is always a little slower, but I finished around the 9:45 min time. It was also foggy and a bit drizzly.

Although it was only a mile, I'm happy I went out in the morning. I like starting my day that way. When I get the 30-Day Shred video I think I'll do that in the mornings.

Mileage Goal: 7/1000

Slowly getting into it!

2010-01-14T06:43:00.000-08:00

I left a client's last night and ran around their neighborhood. I think this might be a good method! Most of my clients live in nice family communities, so I could just go for little runs at the end of the work day each day.

So run stats: 2.07 miles, 19.58 minutes, 9:36 pace.

Slow, but I'll take it!

That evening T and I went to a Churrascaria... so lots of protein. Still not hungry this morning!

Run Goal: 6/1000

Artic Invasion!!!

2010-01-07T15:33:00.000-08:00

Down here in Texas when it drops below about 50 or 60, you'd think the whole world was ending!

So I took the older pup with me today for a quick little jaunt around the neighborhood before the National Championship game... it was chilly! 34* feels like 24* I managed two miles at about a ten minute pace. I'm still learning to use my garmin. (Figured out how to reset it about a mile in from Monday's run stats!) Hopefully, I'll start having more accurate times/paces.

Mileage Goal: 4/1000!

Slow Progress!

2010-01-07T05:45:00.001-08:00

Goal Updates...
I signed up for the Zooma Women's Half Marathon! It's all women and there is a post race party with mini spa treatments and wine tastes. Two friends from work are probably going to do it too!

So the slow training begins. Right now I feel rather out of shape, combined with my body adjusted to the Gluten Free. I did an random (according to the button on the treadmill) 10 minute mile last night, followed by stretching core, and 20 minutes on the bike. Quick gym trip but it is better than nothing.

Monday night my roomie and I did a super easy 1 miler run as well. I should have time for just a quick 2-3 miles around the neighborhood tonight.

So goal: 2/1000

New Year, New Goals!

2010-01-06T11:12:00.000-08:00

It's time to get back into this whole running thing again! I feel like I'm ready, here's why:

- No more classes, well, except for SCUBA the next two weekends!

- Making my work schedule a bit lighter

- Awesome gym membership

- Got the Garmin 405 for Christmas

- Super inspired by bloggers like Aron and Jess

So here are my running related goals:

1) Run (at least) 4 times a week, even if just the quick mile or so around the block

2) Pick a half marathon training plan and stick to it 80% (hey, I'm realistic)

3) Run a sub 2:15 half marathon

4) Run another marathon and beat my previous time (which shouldn't be hard)

5) Run at least 1000 miles... (only half of Aron's fantastic 2000!)

Just might have the bug

2009-07-29T17:33:00.000-07:00

Despite the last three miles being horrible... I think I want to do more marathons! It's that curiosity of how could I do. Three days later, I have my right calf that's a little tight still but otherwise I feel great! (yay recovery socks!!!)

One thing I need to start doing again is much more strength workouts. I went to the gym after work today and rode the bike for a little over 30 minutes. Then I did a whole bunch of abs and a tiny bit of tricepts and legs. It felt really good.

I got new shoes while I was back in the bay... along with insoles cause I apparently have super high arches and pronate some... which is a strange combination I was told! They feel a little funny, but i'm going to give them a shot.

SO which marathon should I do next???

DONE!

2009-07-26T19:19:00.000-07:00

So despite only having my toughest training run be 7.5 miles of big hills... I FINISHED! And I ran the ENTIRE TIME!

Race Results:

Splits:	7.6 Mi	Half	20 mi	Finish	O'All	Sex	Div
7113 L F 25-29
Full Marathon Start: Gun 5:30:00 Chip 6:31:30
Times:	1:30:47	2:39:01	4:12:22	5:34:02	4497	1453	345
Pace:	11:57	12:08	12:38	12:45

Between miles 23 & 26 I almost cried three times and felt like I was going to hyperventilate.... but I pushed through and T and I finished together.

yes, the time was long... but imagine if I had actually trained ;-)

Perhaps the next one!

Burning Toe

2009-04-30T05:47:00.000-07:00

So I went out for my 10 miles yesterday... tough one... my toe started burning part way through. Too much... much more than usual... and much more on the giant hills.

So I turned around and ran back home... I ran for a solid hour, so probably about 6 miles.

So total running debt is: 2+4 miles: 6 miles! Oh boy oh boy... :-(

Wednesday Update

2009-04-29T08:14:00.000-07:00

I went to the gym after work yesterday... supposed to do 4.5... legs were really stiff and given I'm doing 10 today, I just did an really easy 2.5 then stretched a lot. I figured I can walk two miles for my cross training on Thursday.

Here's to a 10 miler... that will be the longest I've run in over a year!

Revamping the Plan

2009-04-28T08:01:00.000-07:00

More like catching up to the plan actually... so after a surprise birthday trip to Vegas, combined with a stressful last week... I did my version of a sunday nine mile run (7.5 hill run + 1 mi walking cool down) on Thursday night, and then was wisked away to Vegas until late Sunday night. Lots of walking and running but no dancing...

So yesterday I sat down to play catch up with my Hal Higdon plan and I'm going to post it to keep myself more accountable. Due to a quick scheduling break yesterday, I only did 3.5 instead of 5, so I'll make that up today...

So
Tues 4/28: 4.5 mi
Wed. 4/29: 10 mi
Thurs 4/30: easy XT
Fri 5/1: 3 mi
Sat 5/2: Rest
Sun 5/3: 5 mi
Mon 5/4: 3 mi
Tues 5/5: 7 mi
Wed 5/6: easy XT
Thurs 5/7: 4 mi
Fri 5/8: 6 mi
Sat 5/9: 3 mi
Sun 5/10: 12 mi

Then picking up with 8 of the Hal Higdon Novice I Plan!

Oh boy oh boy...

7 mile Sunday!

2009-04-06T07:33:00.000-07:00

I was a little sore after the Cap10K combined with a busy week and slacked a little. Friday, I had a client cancel so I was able to make it home and take the dog out for just under 30 minutes and just under 3 miles. My calves were tight the first 2 miles then finally loosened. Funny how it took a run to make them not sore. I need to make a mental note of that one!!!

So this weekend we had 7 miles scheduled. We're moving Hal's schedule one day over since Sundays are much better long run days for us.

We headed down to beautiful Town Lake and went on the 6.9 mile loop. We ran all the way out, stopped and stretched and got water (Austin is awesome and the runnning have water coolers set up!) walked about 5-10 minutes than ran the rest of the way back. We did probably a little under a 10 minute mile pace. T is working on his breathing and being able to pace.

Today we are doing an hour of XT, which means I get to sit on the bike and read for an hour. Pretty excited about that!

Here's to a happy running week!

Cap 10K

2009-03-31T11:38:00.001-07:00

This past Saturday we ran the Cap 10K! It's a fun, huge (18,000 people) 10K race. I've done it every year I've lived here.

I ran w/ the roomie and we finished in 59:52! Yay Sub 1 hour!!!!

T got distracted by hills (sprinted), Krispy Kremes (ate), water stops (water fights), and trying to find us, so he jogging in a few minutes after us!

We were a little sore, but it got me motivated. The first half of it was hard... my feet and legs were frozen from waiting for an hour, but the second half felt REALLY good!!! And we ran it all no problem! :-)

Left Leg Weirdness

2009-03-26T07:24:00.000-07:00

So I went for my run on Tuesday, just 3 miles. Last weekend my leg knee was a little funny... like if I stepped down a step and put all my weight on my left leg, my knee felt weak.

So when I went for my run, at about 1.5 miles my left leg from knee to ankle felt really tight. I did another mile half walking half running then stretched it out a bunch.

I took yesterday off. I'll do another 3 miles today and see how it goes...

Oh silly leg

Oh! I just realized that this week was the 18th week away so I'm starting at Week 1 of Novice. I realized I was being WAY too amitious thinking about doing the intermediate. I may add a little extra cross training onto the Novice though.

Thoughts?

Staying Somewhat on Track

2009-03-23T11:17:00.000-07:00

So I've been running, almost on the plan I set. Last week, I got in my Tuesday 3 miler (on Tuesday) and Wednesdays hard 3 miler on Thursday (3.1 miles: 27 min, ~8:42 pace) The third 3 miler never happened...

This weekend was supposed to be 7 miles. T and I went to the gym last night, running a little late, and I did a nice slow 5.5 mph jog while he did weights. When he got back I had done 5 miles. I stopped there... we were having people over... excuses I know!

Tomorrow is a 3 miler, easy; Wednesday is 4 miles, and Thursday is 3 again. This weekend drops to 5 I think...

Then I have to decide what 18 week program I am going to do. I am going to do the Hal Higdon Novice... or get bold and try to do the Intermediate... (which might be setting myself up to fail)

Stay tuned....!

Long Run Done... not Quite As Long!

2009-03-15T21:19:00.000-07:00

We were scheduled for a 6 miler today and head out a little after 8pm. It was nice and cool and the sun was setting. :-) Perfect running conditions. We brought the NutPuppy which T worked on training as well ran. We ran nice and slow... just an easy jog, and the run flew by. We ran about 2.5 to Walgreens so I could pick up subscription, and then we headed home. We did about 4.9 in just under an hour. Super slow I know, but it felt easy and I felt strong and steady.

Tomorrow is an off day and T and I are off to the Rodeo (the Cali girl in me just shook her head!)

Then Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday are all 3 miles variations :-)

I Think I Have A Plan

2009-03-13T07:30:00.000-07:00

I decided to just start doing Hal Higdon's novice plan for the next three weeks to start with. After I see how that goes I'll decide whether to do the novice or the intermediate.

I was supposed to do 3 easy miles at the gym last night. I did 1.5 really easily (5.8 mph), then did some intervals at 8mph (for .25) for the rest of the mileage. While overall, I was tired (boo to being sick), I did it and I'm glad I did! Then I did some stretching and abs and legs. One exciting outcome was I could pretty easily touch my toes with my legs stretched out together. I am one of the least flexible people so this is quite a feat for myself!

Today is a rest day; it is also T and my 8mo anniversary. We are going to dinner tonight then off to a little winery town nearby to see some of his family this weekend. The weekend long run is supposed to be 6 miles...

Wish me luck

Motivation!

2009-03-12T12:45:00.000-07:00

So I found this blog from this woman about my age back in my beloved San Francisco area Cali (oh how I miss thee)

http://runnersrambles.blogspot.com/

She has an awesome and intense running plan and I only hope I can get that consistant!

Going to the gym after work today... going to move into it slowly since I've been (make that: am) sick, but I need to MOVE!

Since T and I fell off the inital plan, I need to replan. A friend recommended Hal Higdon's plans which are 18 weeks. We have about 21 weeks left. I am going to come up with a Get Ready For Hal 3 week plan and pick which of Hal Higdon's plans would be best.

Any advice would be appreciated!

Making Progress

2009-03-09T17:01:00.000-07:00

So Saturday I dragged myself to the gym in a slightly grumpy mood. However, when I'm grumpy I'm often stubborn. Determine to prove myself, I settling in a 6mph on the treadmill and began to watch Iron Chef America. It was quite a good one and I lasted the whole show! That's right... I did 6 miles in 59 minutes.

It sucked at the end, and I am completely aware that I still have 20.2 miles to go! But that's now my furthest run of the training...

Now I just have to keep up with it!

Still going... almost strong!

2009-03-02T05:25:00.000-08:00

Firstly, I apoligize for the delays between posts. This weekend was a computer free weekend which was really nice actually.

Saturday I dragged myself to the gym and actually had a great run. I did 5.05 miles in 45 minutes on the treadmill. The first mile was at a 6mph pace, the next 1.5 was 6.5, the next 1.5 was 7.0, then the last mile started at 7.5 and went to 8 at the very very end.

It was hard, but it felt fantastic!!! I have also started strength training a lot more. T and I went and got massages yesterday and his lady gave him some great stretching tips since both of us have really tight calfs.

It's going to be a sleepy, but good week :-)

Woo Hoo! We are back again!

2009-02-16T17:49:00.001-08:00

Yes! This morning T went to the gym and did a nice 4 miler around a 10 minute pace. :-) That's his first good run in probably 4 weeks at least if not a full on month.

After work today I was in NO mood to go to the gym. I'm still tired from NYC. But I made myself go... and I'm glad I did. I wanted to do 4, so I set the time for 45 minutes in case I went under a 10 minute pace. Well, I was feeling good, so I upped it a little 20-some minutes in, then a little more, and a little more... then finished out running the 45 minutes and did 3.5 minutes more to hit 5 miles. :-D A nice, not very hard, feeling good 5 miler. Oh yeah baby!!!

Let's hope tomorrow holds more of the same!

Here We Go Again...

2009-02-16T11:29:00.000-08:00

So Whitesnake proclaims!

We are back from NYC, had a fantastic time! :-) It was great to see my brother and some friends, and just get a chance to relax and be lazy with T. We did go for one short run (20 short blocks) and walked a ton throughout the weekend. It was cold, so we battled not freezing! We're spoiled here in Texas.

I'm heading to the gym tonight after work... I need to start doing longer slow runs instead of my short fast ones. Tonight's plan is 4 slow miles...

Here we go again...

Not Far but Feels Good!

2009-02-11T13:37:00.000-08:00

So I finally started running again after everything. I went back to the gym a few days ago and it felt really good! I didn't run far, just 2-3 miles each day, but I felt strong and it felt good. Due to time the last couple of days, I've just been doing short fast runs. T and I head to NYC tomorrow and are going to bring running gears and jog the park perhaps. It will be nice to do a long slow run. I need to do more of those.

So enjoy Valentine's Day everyone! Here's to getting back to training!

Getting back into the Swing of Things

2009-02-02T09:45:00.000-08:00

It's been awhile. T has been sick... like fever and not eating sick, much less evening thinking about running. I was sick, then I had to go home for a family emergency, so I haven't run since last Tuesday. Our friend, A, who is training as well for the marathon got the flu really bad so he's been out for about a week as well.

So this week we are all starting over... I'm really anxious to start working out again. I was home since Wednesday night, and only brought the bare minimum, so no workout clothes. My mom and I did take a couple of 30 minutes walks, but that was it.

Working out really does destress me, and I need some of that right about now. I'm on my layover, and luckily I didn't plan any work for the rest of the day, so I can take me time, get organized, cook a healthy dinner (and have leftovers for tomorrow), and get some sleep. I was up at 3:30 (Cali time) this morning, so I'm going to crash early.

This month, in addition to watching my workouts, I'm watching my spending. In terms of training, this means trying to make a lot of meals at home, packing healthy leftovers, and buying more fruits and veggies.

Wish me luck!

Training Update

2009-01-20T06:24:00.001-08:00

Sorry for the delay! Life has gotten away from me a bit, but I'm back.

Last Thursday was XT. I honestly can't for the life of me remember what I did. But I know I did something!

Friday, I finished up at work and went to meet T. We were both exhausted and seriously consisted just resting before a 10pm movie for my other roomie's birthday. We were supposed to do a 40-50 minute run. But we got our butts moving, and went and had a great workout. We did speed intervals on the treadmill. I went between jogging at 5 and running anywhere from 7-8.5 mph. Ran 40 then did a 5 minute cool down walk. I didn't go extrememly far, but I did push myself on the sprints. It felt great! After that was a quick dip in the pool for about 10 minutes of laps, then to the sauna and hottub. :-D

Saturday was a rest day, combined with me working for 8.5 hours, and a birthday party at night. We are also trying hard to eat better as well, and doing a fair job at it.

Sunday was supposed to be a 5K race, then 5-7 miles total. I did the 5K hard... probably my best in 3 years. It wasn't super fast... 26:32, about a 8:30 pace, but I'm happy with it! After that, we walked for a few then stretched. Later that evening we went back and played raquetball for an hour.

Monday, T went to the gym in the morning and ran the additional 2 miles. After work, I met him there, and I biked for 45 minutes. T is sick. He was so sweet to just come to the gym, bike for a few, then sit on the ground and talk to me, and not let me stop at 30 minutes even though he was feeling awful.

I'm pretty sure today is 40-50 minutes on the treadmill. Hopefully, I'll get that done. I'm working late tonight, but I'll head to the gym right after. I hope T is feeling better. I might swim a little as well. Or if he's feeling much better, play raquetball!

Happy Running!

Keeping on Pace

2009-01-14T06:25:00.000-08:00

I went to the fancy new gym last night... sadly it's kinda far and up the toll road. It was nice though. Every treadmill had the attached TV; so I watched the Biggest Loser as I ran (and some Scrubs). I did a random hills course, kept it at a slow 5mph pace, and ran for 40 then walked 5 for cool down. (The goal was 40-50 minute of running.) Then I jumped in the pool for about 20 minutes - about 10 minutes of breastroke, and about 10 minutes of floating on my back just kicking. My ankle felt fine which was really exciting!

My legs have been sore so I didn't want to push it to much last night. Slow and steady wins the race, right? Today is just a 20-30 minute run. The plan is to take the dog out after work and do a slow 5 minute warm up, run hard for 20, then a slow 5 minute cool down. :-) Maybe I'll get motivated and do some abs at home too!

Happy Hump Day to All!

Accepting the Process

2009-01-13T04:39:00.000-08:00

Yesterday, I had a schedule chance so I ran to the gym between clients and did a 45 minute hill course on the bike. I even put the resistance a little higher than usual. It was tough at points, but felt good afterwards as usual.

One things I'm struggling with is being patient. The marathon is still a whopping 194 days away, so I have plenty of time. It just is frustrating when I can't run as fast or as far as I want to. I know from previous half marathon races, that the endurance part of running is very much a mental game for me. All three times, I was always able to run further and stronger than I thought. I have lots some of my base that I had 3 years ago since I rarely run anymore. T has a really strong base; he can consistantly do a 6 mile path outdoors in under 45 minutes. Speed-wise he has me easily. My fastest 1 mile ever was 6:58! Just gotta keep plugging away I guess.

Today is 40-50 minutes of running, and then hopefully, I'll be at the new gym and can use the pool for some lazy laps.

Runner's High!

2009-01-11T20:18:00.000-08:00

So after being at the house all day, helping a 6th grader with homework, going through paperwork, etc, the roomie and I finally went to the gym tonight. My calf was a little sore, so I was just going to do 45 minutes of a semi hill courese (so I thought.)

Well, it started me out just walking and then did a big hill, then I upped the speed so I was running. After about 20 minutes, I decided to just do 30 minutes, then walk the rest. Right before I hit 30, T sent me a lovely email, and I decided I could make it to 45. I got to 45 and decided I wanted to hit the 5 mile mark (since today was 5-7 miles). So I kept going... and even at 5 I kinda wanted to continue! It's my first Runner's High since I started training! YAY!!! I did stop at 5 miles (about 53 minutes) and walk the remaining time to 1hr. Then the roomie and I did some stretching.

But it felt so good! And it went by quick, didn't seem like an hour at all, and I didn't even have any magazines or anything to look at. Legs all tingly and such :-) Yes!

Actually did it...

2009-01-10T17:11:00.000-08:00

I had planned to do the 40-50 minute run today. After working from 8:45-5:30, and sneezing from allergies all day I was not in the mood to run. Although, only one or two (if any!) people read this, I still felt bad about having to write that I didn't run.

So I ran.

I tried to do a little bit of interval running (or tempo, still figuring out the difference). For the first 25 minutes, I would do a slow job for one song, then a quicker run for the next song. After that, I just slowly upped my speed every few minutes.

I ended up doing 4 miles in 40 minutes. And now I know I nice flat 4 mi course! :-)

Tomorrow is supposed to be hills, 5-7 miles total (so warmup, hills, cool down, etc.) I'm starting a free trial at T's gym as well.

XT: Rock Climbing!

2009-01-09T07:38:00.000-08:00

Last night we went to T's gym to do some XT. We decided to do some rock climbing, something he is into, but something I've only half tried once. Overall, it was pretty fun! A great arms workout and a little nerve-racking at times. We did that for about an hour, then did 15 minutes on the bike and a minute or two of abs. We went and had salads afterwards.

Today is supposed to be a 40-50 minute run. T isn't working today, so he'll probably do it at some point. I am exhausted and working from 7:30-7:00pm or later and just know it's not going to happen. Tomorrow is supposed to be a rest day, and I'll try to fit it in then instead. (I'm working 8:45-5:30.) As the runs get longer, I'm going to have to work on my time management skills to make sure I fit them in!

Happy Friday!

HEALED!

2009-01-07T11:54:00.001-08:00

Yay!!! I did 25 minutes on the treadmill today during my lunch break. The first 20 were at 5mph, and the last 5 at 6mph. No pain at all. Felt a little stiff in the beginning, but no problems by the end or after!!!

Now its time to get fully back on the wagon! :-D

200 days left!

Moving towards a stronger training

2009-01-07T07:36:00.000-08:00

Went to the gym yesterday after work... according to the plan it was a 40-50 minute run. So I did 30 minutes on the elliptical, then 25 minutes on the bike. I followed it up with some stretching and some abs. T went to the gym in the morning and did 30 minutes on the treadmill, then a lot of weight training.

Today is 20-30 minutes of running. I'm going to try running for another 10-15 minutes on the treadmill (slowly) at the gym today. Then I'll finish the rest on the ellptical or the bike. T is working today, so he'll try to get some XT done at the station. It just depends how busy it is.

The biggest move towards a stronger training was food shopping yesterday. I went to the grocery store and bought a bunch of fish, some more veggies, rice instead of pasta. Tonight T and I are having cod (I think) that's marinated and cheese risotto and green beans. Yummy :-)

Here's to a pain free run today!

Still a No Go on the Ankle

2009-01-06T11:15:00.000-08:00

Yesterday, I met my friend A at the gym. He has decided to do the marathon and is following a navy seals training plan. A is a big Type A. :-)

I decided to give jogging a shot... I ran for 10 minutes at 5mph pace, then walked the remained of the mile. The ankle didn't quite feel normal. It was a little achy by the end. So I'm going to stay off it a little longer.

Today is supposed to be a 40-50 minute run, so I'm going to aim for 4-5 miles on the elliptical. Also, I found this exciting Training For SF Marathon shirts on the website!

The ankle thing is really frustrating. The worst I've ever injured myself was a jammed finger in middle school. Now when I start training for the toughest physical challenge I've ever done, I hurt myself. It sucks.

Sunday's Workout

2009-01-05T06:02:00.000-08:00

Sunday T and I went to his fancy gym. I did about 30 minutes on the ellipical which felt okay. Then we went swimming. I tried to do some laps with the kickboard, but it hurt my ankle to kick in the water. So I swam some laps of breaststroke instead. Overall we probably did 10-15 minutes in the pool. We are going to start week 1 over again this week.

So today is XT again. It's rainy all day today, so I'll be at the gym, probably biking again, and may be a little elliptical. T is doing an all day shift, so he'll do some weights if there is down time at the station.

Today is also the first day back to office work... and back to the crazy schedule of life. Happy Monday to all!

Biking at the Gym was a Success!

2009-01-03T09:24:00.001-08:00

I did a full hour on the bike at the gym yesterday while reading my book and playing Suduko on my phone :-) My ankle felt find the whole time, but in the last five minutes the corresponding butt muscle started to burn, and it felt a little sore in my calf. I'm wondering if I've just been walking funny on my right leg the last couple days and using different muscles. We'll see...

But yay for being on the road to recovery and training again!

I think we are going to repeat week one again next week.

Getting back into Things

2009-01-02T08:45:00.000-08:00

The gym was a n0-go last night. We ended up cooking some, watching a movie, and relaxing at home with the roomie.

This morning T and I walked the dog to the bank. My ankle feels fine walking. Going up on the ball of my foot still aches a little. I'm working midday for about 4 hours, then I'll head to the gym. Today's goal is to do 45-60 minutes on the bike. If the foot still feels okay tomorrow, I'm going to try the elliptical. If that goes okay, then I'll try a jog.

T is off to the gym shortly, after I leave for work. We talked this morning about adding in more strength training.

Ankle Anguish

2009-01-01T14:21:00.000-08:00

So yesterday, T (who is a paramedic) checked out my ankle and determined it was a minor sprain.
I stayed off it yesterday; we ace bandaged it for a little during the day and at night. It feels okay over all, just a little sore if I move it certain ways...

So Mondays XT was done; Tuesdays was cut short (20-30 instead of 40-50). Wednesday was skipped.

Make Up Workouts Needed: 40-50 minute run (I'm going to give the ankle a few more days before that one.) XT

I should do the XT today; we are headed to the gym soon. Luckily we are going to T's gym, so I can always swim if the bike or elliptical hurt. One nice thing about having 7 months to train is that we have a little leeway for such things. :-)

A Snag...

2008-12-30T16:57:00.001-08:00

While doing yardwork this afternoon the dogs barreled me over and I twisted my ankle some. It hurt a little just after, but then felt okay to walk on. I decided to still try and go for a run. I ran for 10 minutes, but I could still feel it, and it wasn't getting any better. So we walk for another 35 minutes. Hopefully my ankle feels better in the morning; it's not swollen or anything.

Tomorrow's run was supposed to be 20-30 minutes. So I'm going to swap today and tomorrow and assuming everything is good tomorrow, do the 40-50 tomorrow and count today's as the 20-30.

We went out with friends who are staying with me last night, and T worked a 12 hr shift again today. He said he would likely be too tired to run after, so he is going to make it up tomorrow or Thursdays (a XT day).

So we're not the best at following a plan... but we're trying!

Monday's XT Completed

2008-12-30T06:19:00.000-08:00

After work yesterday, I went to the gym and did 45 minutes of Hill Intervals in the bike while I read. It felt quite good :-) It seems pretty easy to fit in the training exercise so far, but once my normal work schedule resumes tomorrow I think things will be a little more tricky.

Halfways through January T will be increasing his work schedule as well, so hopefully we can make something work between the two of us.

Also, another friend is thinking about joining us as well! So far I'm the only girl though. :-/ (Which means I'll probably get my butt kicked... although the idea of uber training and showing up the boys is extremely tempting!)

Today is a 40-50 minute run...

Jogging over Walking!

2008-12-29T16:59:00.001-08:00

This morning I went to walk the puppydog around the block (~1mi). Just planning on walking, I was in sweats and a big sweatshirt. However, the urge to jog took over and we jogged most of it. It actually felt better to jog than to walk. Yay for getting back into the running mentality!

Interrupted by Life Already!

2008-12-28T18:51:00.001-08:00

So the plan was the run for about 30 minutes today. About 10am this morning, we discovered a water pipe outside had burst. So we (and by we I mean mainly T) spent the next many hours finding and turning off the main water line,running to T's house to shower, digging a hole to figure out what pipes we needed, multiple runs to Lowes, and fixing the pipe. Then after the dogs sneaked out a few time, T fixed one fence and put a new latch on another, while I got busy with the leaf blower trying to clean out behind the bushes in the front of my yard. I filled up more than 6 30 gal bags of leaves.

Then it was shower and our dinner date we had planned, and now we are about to watch a movie by a fire. So no run today, but lots of physical activity! T is working all day tomorrow and I'll do some XT at the gym and some more yardwork. On the training plan tomorrow is the first official day and it's a XT day anyways...

So here's to life ::raises wine glass::

Day 1 & 2 of Training: Completed!

2008-12-28T07:32:00.000-08:00

The exercising part of training is going... the eating/nutrition part: not so much yet. Friday we ran about 2.9 miles in 27 minutes, then cool down walked the remaining 3 minutes. We did some stretching after that.

Yesterday was XT day. T went to the gym and did 30 minutes in the gym. I went to my gym and did 35 minutes on the bike, easy. Bike riding at the gym goes much faster if you have a book to read. I read Outliers, the new Malcolm Gladwell book. One of the chapters was on how long it takes to become an expert in something. The official tally is 10,000 hours... pretty incredible. I wonder if the same thing applies to running? (That is a LOT of running.) Even if you ran an average of 6mph that would be 60,000 miles logged!

Today we are going to do about another 30 minutes before beginning the book plan tomorrow. I think with all the holiday parties and such this week, I will try to keep an eye on my eating habits, but won't get too serious about it until vacation ends on the 5th.

So 2 days down... 6 months and 28 days left!

And so the training commences!

2008-12-26T13:08:00.000-08:00

Today is the first day of official marathon training. We had a great holidays, from Cali to Texas. The last three days we have eaten beef... lots of meat and salad. Now it is back on Track. We are somewhat going to follow a training program in a book by Jeff Galloway. He is the runner who says to run-walk-run-walk, but neither T or I am a fan of that method. Instead, we will follow most of his general XT /run mileage program, but actually run all of the runs. The program in the book starts with XT on Monday, so today T and I are going to run 30 minutes, then XT tomorrow, and run 30 minutes again on Sunday. After that we will start to follow the written plan moreso.

T has decided he wants to follow the training plan to run a 3:30 (~8min/mi) pace. I personally will be excited if (1) I run the whole time (2) I can do a 10 minute pace. Right now, both of those are lofty goals, but I'm all for pushing myself within reason. ;-)

In other running news, T's little brother is going to run it with us. He signeed up yesterday. Now I just need to get my brother on board, although he could "school us all" as he says.

Here's to a first official training run!!!

Off to Cali!

2008-12-18T13:52:00.000-08:00

Nothing training related to post today... we are off to Cali this evening! Not even going to bring running clothes given the crazy schedule we have planned. I'm sure we'll walk about the city enough anyways. After that it's off to Houston, then official training begins!!! We still need to get a general training plan though. I like some of the ones you can create on Runners World. Have a great holidays!

Goal Accomplished

2008-12-17T17:07:00.000-08:00

So I just ran the quick mile... and the puppydog and I ran not jogged. (I'm thinking in the 8-8:30 range, which is pretty good for me.) Yay! I can honestly say if I didn't have to come post whether or not I ran, I probably would have skipped it. Hurray for accountability :-P Now time to shower and get ready for our date!
-L

Today's Goal

2008-12-17T08:12:00.001-08:00

Today's Goal: Run the puppydog on the quick 1 mile loop around the house before my date with T. I shouldn't have any excuse since it takes less than 10 minutes, and I'll want to shower before our date anyways!

And so the Challenge begins!

2008-12-16T12:01:00.000-08:00

Sunday night, T and I signed up for the San Francisco FULL marathon this summer. The race is on July 26, 2009. CRAZY. I have run the SF Half twice, and an Austin half once, and T runs around the lake a lot. We are both going to have to train... which I've never really done in the past.

We leave for the holidays on Thursday, so official training shall commence December 26, 2008. That gives us exactly 7 months to train. We will use the next week and a bit to figure out how we are going to train. Given our personalities, I don't think we will have a crazy strict schedule, or a rigid meal plan, but we are going to try to train in some systematic way. T goes to the gym nearly daily, and I make it about 2-4 times a week. (That will need to be upped!) Sadly, we belong to different gyms.

One of the biggest challenges is going to be scheduling. We only have so much time together, usually later in the evenings, and the social calendar tends to fill up. I tend to make references to "as soon as things aren't so busy" at which point T reminds me "things are always busy".

So this blog is to keep me accountable... comments, suggestions, training tips are more than welcomed!