Thursday, December 30, 2010

updating

Treadmill is fixed again, as of this morning!!!  Hurray, hurray, hurray.  After the day where I ran around the house, I just gave up and went to aerobics the next Friday and Monday.  On Wednesday, I ran on my parents' treadmill (long hot run of death in the extra-warm basement).  Friday Neil and I went running outside together--very cold and icy and snowy.  And on Tuesday, Neil and I ran together again, except we were both really tired (since Isaac woke up every half-hour all night), so we probably walked 1/3 of the time.  It was nice to just hold hands and wander around the lake instead of racing against the blustery wind.

Today, back on the treadmill for my standard four miles.  I saw my mom's personal trainer on Monday and she gave me some great info about knowing when I actually would need to STOP running due to the pregnancy (basically if my knees start aching from my hips pulling my knees out of alignment). So at 21 weeks, still running the 4, but it's not feeling very fast.  Today I ran it in just over 37 minutes, but I'm at a frustrating point where I don't have enough air to run really fast, but when I slow it down to a comfortable-to-breathe pace, my legs get more tired because it's easier for me to run faster rather than slower.  Anyone else experience that?  I actually start getting leg cramps around 10-minute miles, whereas if I speed up to 9-minute miles, my legs feel great, but the breathing is not so happy (normally I wouldn't worry about this at all, but with the pregnancy I'm trying not to overheat or generally overdo it).  I don't know if I'll be able to keep up with the 4 for the next 19 weeks, or if I'll have to cut down to 3 or even 2, but right now my plan is to try to keep it here as long as possible. 

So--21 weeks pregnant, 4 miles, about 9:20/mile

Wednesday, December 15, 2010

12/15

I'm going to stop posting here until I start training for something again or seriously change up how much I'm running, because it's the exact same every time:  4 miles MWF.  On the treadmill.  Same pace.

Except my treadmill broke Monday, so I didn't run then, and I ran around the inside of my house for 36 minutes tonight because I apparently am obsessed.  But aside from that, runs are standard, and I feel silly posting here.  I'll post again if I have to change my routine as my pregnancy progresses. 

Monday, December 6, 2010

12/2, 12/6

Four miles on Thursday (no run Friday since it was a crazy day and we left for Chicago that afternoon; spent so much time walking around Chicago on Saturday that my knees and ankles were throbbing!!).

Four miles today, at about the same pace (alternating between 6.5 mph and 6.8 mph).

Both runs averaged just under 9 minutes/mile. 

Wednesday, December 1, 2010

12/1

So I think some of the stomach pain I've been experiencing is just round ligament pain from running (I know, I'm brilliant, it took me forever to realize this).  For the last month or so I've had a terrible stomachache four or five hours after I run, and I think it's just the stretching on the ligaments...I think I'm going to look into support bands, even though it doesn't bother me at all when I run.  The run itself feels awesome, it's just a few hours later where I start to feel this weird pain.  Anybody else experienced that?  Or have any brands of bands they'd recommend?  I'm having trouble finding one specifically designed for running.

STATS:  4 miles, 9:00/mile (6.5 and 6.8 mph repeats, trying to build up on speed again!)

Monday, November 29, 2010

11/29

Back on the treadmill again today...I didn't run Saturday because I spent the day curled in the fetal position wishing to be unconscious.  Moving on.

Four miles today, which brings my grand total for the month of November to a paltry 34.  Impressive, right?  All that bed rest.  I've been doing yoga two or three times a week on the other days.

Pushed myself a little (not much) harder today, now that I know that we are theoretically back in a safe zone.  Started out at 6 mph, gradually moved up to 6.5, and stayed there for the last 21 minutes of the run.  Still slow, slow, slow, but I'm just glad that I'm running.

STATS:  4 miles; 9:22/mile (avg)

Friday, November 26, 2010

11/26

Same route as Wednesday, but not nearly as fun!  Twenty-four degrees, snow, wind, and ice.  Ick.  But we did it...

Wednesday, November 24, 2010

11/24

First run in a week, after lots of bleeding, ultrasounds, and hospital visits.  Awesome, right?!  Some of the days I was on bedrest and some I just did yoga (3 times, I think).

Neil and I ran together today for the first time since the half--it was SO nice to run with him again.  Love that man.  We ran a trail that was my favorite all through high school--a couple miles of road, and another couple through a bog and woods.  About four and a half total; beautiful cold November weather and a bit of ice on the trail.  Lovely!!!

Wednesday, November 17, 2010

11/17

Saw my OB today, who gave me the go-ahead to keep running.  She told me she was impressed by my level of fitness, which made me feel so warm and toasty inside, especially since I haven't been feeling particularly fit lately!  She was so supportive, which was wonderful. 

I ran four miles tonight after the kids were in bed and felt fantastic.  I love running so much; I'm so glad that I can keep going for awhile!  I need to order a support band in the next month or so, I think--from what I've read they help you keep your speed up as the pregnancy progresses. 

Lately I've been reading natural childbirthing stories while I run, in an effort to educate myself more about the positive aspects of labor (as opposed to the horror stories that I have heard countless times).  I think it's a nice idea in the abstract, but the reality is that I keep laughing aloud as I'm running and reading particularly choice sentences to Neil.  Which is probably not going to help in achieving the desired effect of calmness and serenity (but really, when someone is talking about how all the midwives mooed with them and it was the best thing ever--seriously?)

Monday, November 15, 2010

11/12, 11/15

The running still feels good!  Hurray!  Last week I still took it a little easy--I ran 3 on Saturday in addition to the 2 Monday and the 4 on Friday, and then did yoga on Tuesday, Thursday, and Friday.  I am in love with yoga again; although I don't feel like it gives me the same kind of workout that running does, the stretching and the connection to my body are so good for me right now.  It's nice to take some time to just feel centered and relaxed and back away from my to-do list, especially since I always have some form of entertainment while running.

Four miles today--felt fantastic.  Still running more slowly than I'd usually like, but as long as I stay under a 10-minute mile I guess I won't worry too much. 

Wednesday, November 10, 2010

11/8, 11/10

So here's the thing.  I stayed on bedrest through Wednesday of last week, at which point things were improved (i.e. no bleeding).  Thursday, Friday, Saturday, and Sunday I took it easy, but not bedrest-easy.  Like still doing things around the house but trying to lie down for awhile in the afternoon and going to bed early.  I slept 12 hours both Friday and Saturday nights.

I felt awesome on Monday.  My sore throat was gone and my stuffed-up sinuses felt so much better.  And I thought about how the nurse said I could "gradually" work back up to more activity, including possibly running, at some point.

I know this may seem stupid, but I really feel like the bleeding was connected to the fact that I threw up and was coughing nonstop--which hasn't happened during my entire pregnancy to date--rather than my running.  You'd think that the half-marathon would have caused issues if the running was the problem. 

And then I thought about it some more and prayed about it too (yep!).  And talked to Neil about it and got his approval, and my mom, who is not a fan of running in the first place but agreed with my not running-but-sickness-inducing-bad-things reasoning. 

So...I ran.

Only two miles, and 10-minute miles rather than my normal pace.  Then I walked another 2 miles.  It felt GREAT to run again.  So, so, so great.  I had more energy the rest of the day and I slept much better that night.

So then I kind of waited to see if anything happened--no cramping, no bleeding.

So I did a prenatal yoga DVD yesterday. 

Still fine.

So I ran 4 miles today (the first two were 10-minute miles, but honestly, it was so slow that it was harder to run, so I bumped up the speed a wee bit and my overall average pace was 9:36/mile.  Still felt awesome.

Now we'll see what happens. 

I'm hoping that if I go to my doctor next week and say, look, I've been running--less than usual and slower than usual but still running--that she will okay it officially.  Whereas I think if I stayed on bedrest and THEN asked her if I could run, the answer would probably be no, because she isn't a runner and tends to be pretty conservative.  And then by the time I got cleared to run again (after the 20-week ultrasound would be the earliest date, I'm guessing?) it would be too late to start again.

So, I'm hoping that this works out and that I don't end up regretting running.  I'm not trying to outsmart the doctor, or sneak around my body's and the baby's needs, but I don't want to give up something that is beneficial if it's not causing problems.  It is still kind of nerve-wracking, however...

Monday, November 1, 2010

11/1

I ran four on Friday and four this morning.

I felt awful this morning--like I was coming down with something.  I was hoping I'd feel better after I ran, but no such luck, instead I ended up throwing up an hour later.  And having some other unpleasant symptoms (I'll spare you the details), but now I'm terrified that I'm miscarrying.

Thursday, October 28, 2010

10/28

Whew!  The running is getting difficult these days--not the run itself, but just finding time.  The children--the blessed, blessed, saintly children--have started sleeping in until 8 am.  Neil leaves at 6 and I go back to sleep until 8, so I think I'm officially saying goodbye to my morning runs.  I loved having the run over and being ready to go early in the day, but the extra two hours of sleep is making all the difference in the world. 

So naptime runs it is, although I worry about running on the treadmill for the baby's sake, since it's so much hotter than running outside.  I run with the window open and the fan on, but I really hope that things are okay for the baby?  Anybody know on this?  I've thought about running in the evenings, but I usually tend to be pretty nauseated at that point, so if I leave the run until the end of the day, it's just about impossible to make myself go (plus I don't want to leave when Neil is finally home!)

I feel like I've said this before, but pregnancy running is challenging for me, what with the exhaustion, the nausea, and the generally lower energy.  Every run is a victory, which sounds a little odd, but it's true.  So even if I don't keep running as long as I'd like, I'm proud of myself for just making it this far.  And hopefully farther. 

STATS:  4 miles; 9:05/mile (slower today because I honestly felt pretty lousy). 

Tuesday, October 26, 2010

10/26

Bad combination:

1) Running 10 minutes after eating dinner (it was literally the only time all day)
2) Running uphill into...
3)...post-tornado watch winds.

Seriously.  What was I thinking?!  I honestly think I could have gone faster at some points walking than running into the teeth of that wind.  At least the maple woods were breathtakingly beautiful. 

STATS:  4 miles, barely under 10/mile by my kitchen clock when I left/got home

Monday, October 25, 2010

10/25

I've been exhausted lately--I fell asleep last night just after nine and slept until eight this morning and I've still felt groggy and dizzy all day.  Blech.  Running in the morning is so much better for my mood, but I am really struggling to get enough sleep, and I don't know if it would be an improvement to get up at 6 again to run.  So frustrating.

Another treadmill run during naptime.

STATS:  4 miles; 8:41 first 2.6 miles; slowed to 8:49 last 1.4 miles

Friday, October 22, 2010

10/22

Another treadmill run today; I was hoping to run yesterday but the kids were so sick & cranky all day that it never happened between going to the doctor, pharmacy, parent-teacher conference,s and the grocery store.  So I just went to bed early instead, which means I likely won't hit 20 for the week.

My knees were bothering me a fair amount after the race; they started to ache a little today too.  I'm wondering if it's still just post-race stress, or if it's pregnancy affecting my joints.  I guess we'll see.

STATS:  5 miles; 8:41/mile

Wednesday, October 20, 2010

10/20

Four on the treadmill this morning.  I need to figure out a good way to get my winter runs in; I don't like running in the pitch-black morning and cold that have now taken over my normal 6 am slot; it's not much better at 7.  Plus, let's be honest, I seem to need about 12 hours of sleep right now, so getting up before 6 is awful.  It may end up being the treadmill most of the time.  Which, while not my favorite, is an option I'm grateful to have.

I need something new to train for; I need that drive and motivation.  I want to keep running about 20 miles a week as long as possible through this pregnancy, but it sure helps to have a race I'm working towards.  Of course, all the winter races are in places like Disney World, which isn't really on our calendar at the moment.

STATS:  4 miles; 8:41/mile

Monday, October 18, 2010

10/18

First post-race run today.  I wasn't very stiff after the race--at least not right away.  By about eight o'clock that night, my hips and knees were starting to feel like the bones were grinding against each other in their sockets, and I was pretty uncomfortable for awhile.  I ended up going to bed with heating pads on my knees and hips and managed to get up in the middle of the night only by walking along the wall for the first five steps.  I definitely prefer running on trails to crowned asphalt roads.

I felt a lot better today, but I still didn't want to run.  But I did in the end, mostly because I felt like I could run a shorter distance tonight and not feel guilty about it since I could play the "two days after race" card. 

STATS:  3 miles; 8:56/mile

Saturday, October 16, 2010

Official race stats

Indianapolis Half-Marathon

Time: 1:58:52
Pace: 9:05/mile
Div. place: 62/280
Sex place: 260/1580
Overall place: 820/2755
5 mile split: 44:20 / 8:52/mile

*Walked through water stops; 1 bathroom stop (dang thing cost me 2 minutes and was worthless!)

Half-marathon race report

First of all, let me get this out:  my time was 1:58:54.  Pregnant.  Allow me a minute of gloating to myself, because I am REALLY proud that I chipped 7 and a half minutes off my time from April's half (my first).  While pregnant. 

Okay, I'm done now.  :-)

Neil and I got up at 5:15 this morning and drove to Indianapolis.  We picked up our packets (sidenote:  it's weird seeing a bunch of runners all together because it's like what America would look like if there wasn't such a big obesity problem.  It made me realize how used to that I am when I was surprised by seeing so many slender and fit people), but it was icy cold, so we climbed back in the car for awhile and luxuriated in the warmth.  Then we decided to go over and go to the bathroom at CVS before the race, rather than a portapotty, although honestly, the portapotty would have probably smelled better--the CVS bathrooms had been very overused that morning.  We waited in line for almost 40 minutes (!!!) and then when we got out, we heard the last notes of the Star Spangled Banner drifting away in the breeze.  And Neil had still not tied his shoes, for some weird reason.  So we sprinted to the start line, and since we were in Corral C, we had to do a lot of running to get up to our place, since the corrals went back to H or so.  But we were both had a serious shot of adrenaline to start off!

This race is much more of a blur to me than the last two.  I ran to my iPod the entire time, since I start to slow down when I'm talking.  Pros were that I was more focused, cons were that I didn't feel as connected to Neil throughout the race since weren't talking much (and apparently I was talking extremely loudly). 

The first couple of miles were great.  I was running easily; we were going through a state park with gorgeous fall colors, and I felt fantastic.  Right about at the third mile marker we hit the first substantial hill, and we were back on the road, and that was not so pleasant.  I jogged up the hill making sure to stay in front of the 4-hour marathon pace group and decided I wouldn't worry about pace as long as they were in sight.  I actually managed to maintain a really even pace during this race, which was great--I think all of the training and speedwork really paid off in making me a more even runner without a tendency to run fast on the flats and then slow way down on hills.  Anyway.

Mile 5 is distinguished only because I felt my hernia scar hurting.  Then it went away.  Mile 6 was where I stopped to go to the bathroom because it seemed like a good idea, and I could NOT GO AT ALL.  I was so irritated that I'd wasted the time!!  Mile 7 was one of those really annoying doubler things where the people on the other side of the road already ran to a turn-around point, and you're just running wondering how far it is until YOU get to the turnaround point, which we did at mile 8.  I noticed the time at this marker was 1:14 something, which was encouraging because we only had 5 miles left and I was fairly confident at this point we'd make it in under 2 hours.  Miles 9-10 were another annoying turn-around thingie, except this one was really, really long.  And it also doubled back on the marathon course, so we could see the very front runners in the marathon on mile 17 or so.  We were also running through a bunch of leaveless walnut trees at this point, which I found annoying because they were very ugly, and I didn't like looking at them for so long (I know, it was a dumb thing to be irritated about, but...).  Just before mile 11, we were back in the woods and hitting the nasty hills.  Many people were walking up; I kept on running but it was pretty much willpower getting me through, since I could feel the lactic acid hitting my legs and some of the fatigue setting in.  Neil, on the other hand, was jumping up to grab branches and making them shower leaves down on the people behind him, which I'm sure they all loved.  Tall Man Not Running to Capacity Because of Slower Wife. 

Mile 12 was another willpower mile.  I knew that I was still within the time for a sub-2 half, and this thought kept me going.  Honestly, at this point I was very zoned in and focused.  I didn't feel good, but I was just extremely focused, and annoyed at the people trying to shove water at me.  Seriously?  You think I'm going to stop for water now

Mile 13 came and went somewhere, and I don't know when, because we could see the finish line from about 1/3 of a mile away, so I was really just looking ahead wondering how it was still so far away.  The guy next to me kicked my foot right as we were about 100 yards away and grabbed my shoulder to pull me back up, which I really appreciated, since it was probably my fault that we ran into each other anyway. 

I crossed the finish line at the same steady pace that I'd used the whole way--honestly, I don't think I could have sprinted if I'd wanted to, since I was just in my zone and running with the exact same tempo that I'd been using for the last five miles.  Right up until the very end, I was still passing people, which felt GREAT--the last guy I passed was probably 20 feet from the finish line?  It was pretty much the best thing ever to be consistently passing for the whole race, although some of that may have been due to the fact that I took the time to walk through every water stop so I could actually stay hydrated for the baby's sake.  And I didn't feel like passing out like I did after the April half, which was also awesome.  I really felt pretty good; Neil and I walked around and looked at all the tents and ate some food and I got an astronaut blanket, which helped control the crazy shivering I always have after I finish a run.

Overall, I was really happy with this race, not just that I met my goal of a sub-2 half-marathon, but I really felt like my training paid off.  During the last three miles, I was tired, but my body was so conditioned to just keep going that my legs took over and just did their own thing.  I must say that while I did MORE mileage overall, and did a lot more speedwork, than I did for my first half in April, the most I ended up ever running for the long runs was ten miles (the 11-mile run got knocked out by Neil's concussion, and we tapered to 7 instead of the 12 last week), but I think overall I was at a high enough fitness level that it wasn't an issue.  I think the last three miles, in a weird way, were actually easier than some of the middle miles. 

Tuesday, October 12, 2010

10/12

More tapering--30-minute tempo run, although I didn't really bother with the tempo part; I just ran.

I started out at my normal warm-up pace of 8:40, but I felt nauseated after just two minutes.  So I slowed down and ran 3.5 miles at 9:02/mile.  I just have to keep telling myself to focus on mileage, not on pace, but it's hard to not want to push myself--it's a very different mentality that seems foreign to me after a year of trying to push myself to be tougher and faster.

On a sidenote, I've run 178.5 miles during this pregnancy so far.  Not too shabby. 

STATS:  3/5 miles; 9:02/mile

Monday, October 11, 2010

10/11

Four miles today--really struggling with fatigue.  This is always the hardest thing for me in early pregnancy, and while the running gives me endorphins, sometimes I'm just exhausted while I run.  It's not that my muscles are tired, or sore, it's just that I'm so tired that I spend all day in a haze of wishing I could lie down--not sleep, just lie down.  But at least I'm running.

STATS:  4 miles

Saturday, October 9, 2010

10/8 & 10/9

Starting tapering!  Hurray!  We're almost there.

Ran three last night; I was pretty tired so I didn't really start to enjoy the run until the last half-mile, at which point I thought about continuing, but I still had a ton of grading to do and it was dark enough that it was hard to see.

Ran a lovely seven this morning.  I'm not timing myself anymore, on the advice of more experienced pregnant runners, so I don't really know what my pace was, but it took me 71 minutes to run 7 miles, stop for water 4 times, find someone to unlock the nature center bathroom and then use the bathroom.  So I think that's pretty good. 

In our original plan we were going to run 12 today, but I'm glad we decided to just do 7 (Neil actually only ran 6, haha I won!) because all our kids are so sick that we couldn't have left them with anyone else, we have the longest to-do list today that we've had in months, and I just plain don't want to run run 12 miles by myself.  So I'm really happy with today's run.  Now I have to go mow the lawn.  The end. 

STATS:  3 miles 10/8, 7 miles 10/9

Wednesday, October 6, 2010

10/6

It wasn't until yesterday evening that I even thought about the fact that I needed to run; it just wasn't on the radar.  I've been grading like crazy every second that the kids are sleeping, and I'm seriously rethinking how much I can actually handle teaching-wise with three kids.

I went to bed last night dreading my run this morning.  I woke up all night because I was so stressed about having to get up and worried about not getting enough sleep, so of course I didn't sleep well!  When I finally was running this morning, it was such a relief to have it over, even if it was only 3 miles.  Tapering, I love you. 

Monday, October 4, 2010

10/4, 10/2, 10/1

Ran 5 this morning and 5 on Friday.  Saturday was supposed to be a long run, but after the awfulness of spending Thursday in the ER with Neil, I was a wreck.  Neil wanted to run, so we ran about five and a half together, but I was having awful stomach cramps around 5, so we decided to walk for a couple minutes (we were almost home) and then stop for Conference, which was just starting.  I thought about running on the treadmill during conference, but I was just feeling so sick like I was going to throw up any minute.  So then I thought I'd run after Conference.  I got up to go and I was so nauseated and dizzy.  I ended up showering and just sort of sitting on the floor feeling terrible.  I felt awful the rest of the day and had stomach cramps all afternoon until I finally went to bed that night.

Today I'm still exhausted.  I couldn't sleep last night because I was so stressed over the last week and how much I have to do this week.  My running partner mentioned that I shouldn't even do the 12-miler I have planned for Saturday (next Saturday the 16th is the half-marathon).  She suggested that I just start tapering this week.  I'm leaning towards this option because a) both people I regularly trade running babysitting with will be out of town this week b) I have been so tired plus Neil has a concussion and c) I'm 8 weeks pregnant.  Surprise surprise!  I'm not mentioning this on my regular blog because I don't want people to hassle me about still running, but it's affecting my running enough that I decided to go ahead and mention it here.  I don't want my body to be totally shocked by the 13 (although I don't care about time anymore and I just want to finish) so I don't know whether it will be better to NOT stress myself with the 12, or whether the thirteen will feel harder having only run 10 miles as my longest run this training period.  I have a TON of grading to do this week and I'm kind of an emotional wreck right now (lots of stress + pregnancy hormones + husband in the ER was a very bad combo!), so the idea of somehow wedging in 12 miles this Saturday is not very pleasant. 

So what would you do?  Try to fit in the 12, or just do a 6 or 7 and call it tapering?  Anybody have pregnant-and-running advice to share?

Wednesday, September 29, 2010

9/29

Three this morning.  Would have loved to run more to make up from yesterday, but there's no time.

STATS:  3 miles

Tuesday, September 28, 2010

9/28

So it's official:  I've missed my first run of this half-marathon training.

Neil's alarm went off at six and I barely registered that he left.  I'd thought last night about trying to run this morning but realized that the sleep was probably going to be more important in the long run, since I didn't fall asleep until about midnight last night (one of those manic mind-too-alert nights where you lie there just thinking forever).

When I did finally wake up, I got myself and the kids ready, fed everyone breakfast, made our beds, vacuumed the house, and left for visiting teaching at 9.  We got back at 11 and went on a walk, played on the swings, ate lunch, and left again at 12:25.  Jules and Isaac went to a friend's house; I went to Abigail's school and worked in her classroom all afternoon.  We got home at about 4, read stories together, then I made dinner, we ate, cleaned up, and I took Abigail back to school for an orientation meeting.  We got home from that about 7:30.  Neil and I worked on Abigail's school assignments with her, then did some vocab, I read her a story, and then she went to bed around 8.  I spent the next hour paying bills and prepping everything for tomorrow (appointments at 9, 10, and 12:30-3:30, plus missionaries for dinner).  Now it's nine o'clock, I can still think of about five things I need to do before going to bed, and I need to be up in another 9 hours running.

I'm actually okay with this (despite my long explanatory post).  I went to bed last night knowing I probably wouldn't run today; I wish it had worked out, but sometimes it just doesn't.  I really try to make sure that neither running nor teaching infringes on my family time, so...there you have it.

Monday, September 27, 2010

9/27

Hard to get up today, even after a night of solid sleep.  It was freezing!!  I think fall is officially here--except my basil is still alive.

We ran five over the same trail that Neil and I ran Saturday (and the same one we went to yesterday on a walk through the woods with the kids).  I need to find a new place to run just for variety's sake, but that one's so convenient and has a good mix of hills and flat stretches. 

When I got home, I was still icy cold.  I stood in the shower for ten minutes with my teeth chattering.  Then Neil wrapped me up in towels he'd warmed in the dryer.  I was still cold, so I crawled back into bed fully dressed under a huge pile of quilts.  When I finally got warm, I fell asleep again, and didn't wake up all through Neil getting the kids ready and fed.  He woke me up right before he left for work.  What a great guy.

Saturday, September 25, 2010

9/25

Ten long, hard, painful miles tonight.

We had our friends' children overnight, and it was an exhausting day (their parents picked them up at 6 pm this evening after dinner).  I was dreading the run all day.  And it was pretty bad--both Neil and I were just tired and worn out.  Running in the evening is always really hard for me anyway, but today was especially difficult.  The first five miles were pretty good, then we stopped and got a drink and it started raining.  And it was completely dark by this time.  So it was raining and dark and cold (55 degrees, which is normally pleasant but in the dark and rain was a little chilly). 

My knees and arches were aching by the time we finished the next four.  We needed to get back to relieve the friend who was watching our kids (did I mention we watched their kids too last night, so we had 9 kids?) and so then I ran the last mile on the treadmill.  It was a really miserable mile, but it was standing between me and my no-missed-runs record for training for this race.  Kind of like how I didn't miss a single day of early-morning seminary until the very last day of junior year, when I had a required field trip that left at 5:00 AM.  I guess it's a mental thing.


Sidenote:  Neil is at the store right now buying bacon.  I have been craving BLTs since I picked tomatoes earlier today and realized that it's a long time until next summer's tomatoes, since we've quit buying them from the grocery store for the last couple years.  I have had bacon exactly twice in the last two years (on my birthday in 2009 and on my sister's birthday this June while we were camping--the burned nasty I had at IKEA doesn't count) so I am really looking forward to this.  There's very little I miss meat-wise about being vegetarian, but I do miss bacon. And sausage.  (you know, those super-healthy high-quality meats.)

STATS:  10 miles; deliberately did not time

Friday, September 24, 2010

9/24

Five this morning.  It took me twenty minutes to actually get up, and then it only happened because Neil turned the light on. 

I didn't push too hard today because there's ten miles waiting for me tomorrow--after we watch our friends' kids overnight and until 6:30 pm tomorrow.  I'm really not looking forward to running after 28 hours with six kids, but that's how it has to happen, I guess.  (And we're watching another couple's three children tonight so that they'll watch for us tomorrow night.  I think I'm going to sleep well after an evening with 9 children--the oldest is six).

I ran on the treadmill today while Neil ran outside.  I don't like the treadmill, but on the other hand I read the Conference Ensign the whole time, so that was nice...plus when Neil came home he said the wind was terrible, so I guess I got the better end of the deal.  But I still don't like the treadmill. 

STATS:  5 miles, 8:41/mile

Wednesday, September 22, 2010

9/22

Exhausted today--completely exhausted.  I've got to get more sleep.

I clocked the run, but we also had to stop 4 times for traffic, so I think it's actually slower than we were going--although I really was slow.  My thighs just felt like lead weights rather than actual muscles.  I'm looking forward to a rest day tomorrow and sleeping in.  It's funny because I always think, "Oh, the Wednesday run is so short!  I should add another couple of miles," and then I'm totally dragging by the third mile.  Which I guess means that my workouts the other two days are just strenuous enough...right?

STATS:  3 miles, somewhere under 30 miles with lots of traffic stops

Tuesday, September 21, 2010

9/21

Speedwork today.  I've been fighting a really killer headache since about 10 pm last night (the kind where you're lying with a wet towel on your head at midnight wishing you were unconscious) and it definitely kicked in while I was running--I think I just haven't been drinking enough, which ALWAYS triggers headaches for me.

So I ran the first 7 400-meter repeats okay (although I did stop after the 6th set to take a drink), but during the 7th, my head starting pounding so much I was having trouble staying upright.  I slowed down and kept running, then slowed down some more.  It's sort of okay now, but I need to be drinking a LOT more--I didn't hydrate well over the weekend, since I wasn't home Friday through Sunday, and I'm paying for it now.

First 7 400-meter repeats at 8:00/mile out and 8:20/mile back
gradual slowing during last 2 repeats, ending run at 8:41/mile

STATS:  9x400-meter repeats (4.5 miles), 37 minutes, avg pace 8:13/mile

Okay, so I really feel pretty crappy right now.  Stupid headache, I loathe you.  

Monday, September 20, 2010

Neil's 10K time

I forgot to post this earlier--Neil's 10K time was 48:05 (he ran the first third or so with me at a slower pace; his average pace was 7:44/mile, although the first few were at that slower 8:28 pace, so when he wasn't with me he was running quite a bit faster, about 7:25/mile). 

I love running with Neil, but I'm glad he went ahead and ran by himself--I kind of wish he'd done it for the whole race so he could see what his real race pace is without his slowpoke wife!  After the race, however, he told me he didn't like running by himself and he really missed me, so I guess I just need to get faster...

9/20

Oh boy, did I NOT want to go running this morning.  I slept about twelve hours yesterday--totally coming down with the awful cold the kids have.  And once we drove the 3 hours home and I was in my own bed, I couldn't sleep because I kept thinking about everything I needed to do.  So crawling out of bed this morning was not pleasant at all.

I'm glad I went, however, because I feel better now than when I first got up.  It was definitely not my most impressive time ever, but on 4 hours of sleep last night, my goal was to not stop and just keep running.  Which I did. 

STATS:  5 miles, 9:38/mile

Saturday, September 18, 2010

10K race report

Okay, so I don't have a ton of time to write this, since we're finishing up a big party, so I have to be quick!!

Neil and I ran our first 10K this morning.  We arrived there and it was just a bunch of people bouncing up and down in the freezing cold early morning.  I was laughing to myself because only runners are crazy enough to get up too early and run in the cold and the rain and then PAY FOR IT. 

Anyway, so this race had the following:
  • A spray-painted starting line
  • A woman on a ladder with a megaphone telling us to line up behind aforesaid starting line
  • Woman on a ladder saying, "On your mark, get set, go!"
Which is to say, it was not the largest race ever.  I was bib #590; I'm not sure how many total entrants there were.  A pretty decent-sized field, but definitely on the smaller side.

We started out and I was running WAY too fast; about 7:00ish/mile.  I slowed down because I started feeling dizzy, and we ran down the first hill.  To be honest, I was not feeling great.  I didn't feel very good when I got up this morning, and I ate about four bites of oatmeal and couldn't eat any more.  I managed to choke down a little bit of bread on our way to the race, but I was just kind of running on adrenaline and willpower the whole time.  Then the skies opened up and a typical Michigan monsoon began, and let me tell you, it can seriously dump some rain in Michigan.  I was soaked pretty fast, and the thunder and lightning was a little crazy. 

I kept feeling like I was holding Neil back, so about 3 kilometers in, I convinced him to run ahead of me. He finally agreed to go, and I just ran along by myself.  Actually, in some ways it was a little easier running by myself, because I just zoned out and focused on catching up to the person in front of me (and avoiding the deer).

It rained the whole race.  And it was cold.  And my iPod kept telling me I wasn't going as fast as I wanted to, (but then guess what?  When I got to the end, I realized it was miscalibrated and so it was under-pacing me).

When we got to the end, I was actually running pretty strong; I'd picked up the pace again after coming over a nasty (long build-up) overpass, and I'd skipped the third and final waterstop so I could just push through--which turned out to be a really good decision.

So when I saw the finish chute, I just powered it up.  I switched into full-out sprinting mode (shades of middle-school track) and pushed as hard as I could up the HILL to the finish line--the runners on either side of me did a double-take and pushed hard and we all ended up crossing together. 

My final time was 52:34, for about 8:28/mile.  But here's the best part:

I placed 16th overall for women...AND...

3rd in my age division!!  I was SOOO excited!  But of course, I wasn't expecting anything like that, so I just jogged the mile back to my car through the rain without waiting around...so hopefully I can pick up whatever certificate or thingie later.  But seriously, I am SO pumped!!!  I was feeling a little bummed about this race while I was running most of it, because I just didn't feel very strong through most of it, and I started out too strong and then took awhile to recover, but I was REALLY happy with my time and my place, which was completely unexpected.  My goal for this race (when I realized how crappy I felt this morning) was under 9/mile with my "top goal" of 8:45/mile, and I totally smashed it.  :-)

STATS:  10K, 52:34; 8:28/mile, 3rd place for age division

Wednesday, September 15, 2010

9/15

Three-miler this morning.  I thought about running farther, but my body is really starting to not be happy with me.  The rest of my life is contributing stress, so that I'm getting physically worn out, even when I'm not running 200 miles a week or something crazy like that.  (Although most people who run that much probably don't have a ton of other commitments, because really, how would you have time? Or maybe they do and I'm just a wimp.) Apparently 25 a week is enough for all kinds of crazy things to start happening; my menstrual cycle has become incredibly irregular/nonexistent, and I'm so tired that I  fell asleep the other night after dinner with Juliet sitting on my head brushing my hair and Isaac climbing over my legs.

So I'm really looking forward to the 10K this weekend; it means I'm only running 6.2 miles on Saturday, plus I'm going to take Thurs and Fri. off.  I feel like a wimp, but honestly, I haven't missed a single run in the last 8 weeks, and the five runs a week is taking a toll on me.  I am just worn out, and I've got to recharge before that race.

Anybody else feel this way?  (And in particular, I am kind of disturbed by the whole athletic amenorrhea thing.  Granted, it hasn't been six months for me, which is the diagnosis point, but one of the reasons why I decided not to do a marathon was so I didn't mess that up too much, since I'd like to have another baby in the next year or so.  One of my friends told me that it was pretty much the norm for everyone on her college soccer team and then again on her mission, but still...it kind of worries me).  Has this happened to anyone else, or have you heard of it before?

STATS:  3 miles; didn't time, but probably around 8:50ish/mile

Tuesday, September 14, 2010

9/14

Tempo run today for 40 minutes; started out at 8:42/mile and worked up to 7:30/mile, then back down again.  I ran at my slower warm-up pace for too long, since I forgot to check the time, so I ended up running the first ten minutes at 8:42/mile.  Oops. 

STATS:  4.8 miles, 8:26/mile average pace

Monday, September 13, 2010

9/13

The stars were visible until the very last mile of my run today (at which point I could finally see the trail, so it was an acceptable trade-off).

I've been feeling really burned-out lately.  I have a 10K on Saturday and I'm not planning to run on Friday, but now I'm wondering if I should take Thursday off as well.  I don't know why, but it just seems like I have zero energy these days...

STATS:  4.5 miles, didn't time

Saturday, September 11, 2010

9/11

Very tired tonight; ran at the end of a long day in Chicago and dealing with extremely cranky kids.  I started out incredibly slow, totally aching and tired.  I kept telling myself every half-mile that I could do just one more half-mile.  And then of course, once I hit 3.5, I felt great and then I was almost done.  Go figure.  It always takes me 4 miles to really hit my stride and start loving it.

STATS:  4 miles; 9:07/mile

9/10

AWESOME run last night.  Seriously.  The picture is not mine, but that's pretty much exactly what it looked like.

We got out of our temple session at about 8 pm and sat in traffic while we watched the sun go down.  I sighed and said to Neil, "It's going to be completely dark."  And he peered glumly out into the dusk and said, "Yep."

So we decided that we'd at least run four miles, which was our short run for the weekend that we were planning to do Saturday, and if necessary we'd run the ten on Saturday.

Here's the thing:  we live in the country.  Running after dusk there means it's pitch-black, you can't see anything, and you're falling all over the place.  Nobody else is out and quite frankly, it's not very safe.

Running after dusk in Chicago means all the streetlights are on and there are a gazillion people out everywhere just beginning the night.  It was crazy bright!  I seriously felt like the little country mouse gawking at all the lights.

We parked near Children's Memorial Hospital, where Neil's brother used to work.  We ran down Fullerton looking at all the gorgeous row houses, then looped through Lincoln Park and around the lake (which was completely dark with no lights.  A little exciting).  We passed a fancy restaurant right on the edge of the lake--with all its windows and doors open to the gorgeous night air--which was only accessible by foot.  Which I thought was really cool.

We left Lincoln Park and ran along the beach for almost three miles.  This was SO cool, because there was quite a lot of wind, and we were running along the breakwater, and the waves were pounding against it and breaking up over the breakwater near our feet (we ended up running higher for most of the time so we didn't get wet, but oh my goodness, it was so gorgeous).  There were all these boats out moving around in the harbor--enormous yachts, tall-masted sailboats, and tiny little speedboats.  Chicago rose up in front of us and the skyline was absolutely beautiful.  I wish I'd been able to take a picture--it was amazing.  I used the enormous fancily-lit sign of the Drake Hotel as my goal for about two miles!  We were running right next to Lakeshore Drive most of the way, so we were about 100 yards away from the high-rise apartment buildings and hotels lining Lakeshore.  If you've ever driven that at night, you know how spectacular it is; from our perspective near the lake with the light reflecting into the crashing waves, it was just beautiful.  

We ram out to Navy Pier, which was kind of crazy and carnival-esque; I've been there during the day but never during the night, and it was totally different.  The air reeked of fried dough, which smelled good from about a mile away and was totally nauseating up close after I'd run five miles.  We ran past all the beer gardens and the Ferris wheel (wish we'd brought some cash!) and out to the very end of the pier away from all the lights and the noise, where we paused for a minute and watched the tall ship Windy sail away from the pier and out into the harbor.  Then we ran back again.

Some cool things we passed right on the beach--built-in chessboards, a whole bunch of Muslim women on the sand with their babies dressed in gorgeous saris and jewels (at 10 pm, which I thought was kind of cool), about a gazillion runners and bikers, lots of fountains, a roller-hockey rink (with a heated game in progress), and a restaurant with live palm trees that looked very unhappy in the Chicago wind.

We ended our run at Noodles in the Pot, one of Neil's very favorite restaurants.  We ordered a couple of curry dishes to go (it was about 10:30 pm by this point), drank a lot of water, then drove back to our hotel and took extremely hot showers (great showerhead, thank you hotel!!) and ate our curries while we watched an episode of Glee, then we both completely collapsed into instant sleep at 1:15 am (it took awhile to get back to the hotel).

Long story short:  we ran through Lincoln Park, along the beach for three miles with the waves and the wind and the gorgeous Chicago skyline lit up just feet away, and out to the end of Navy Pier.  And back.  Seriously, it was SUCH an awesome run.

STATS:  10 miles; 1 hour 34 minutes, about 9:24/mile--slower than I'd like, but then again, it was pretty late and we were pretty tired.

image

Wednesday, September 8, 2010

9/8

Easy 3-miler this morning.  Cold enough that my teeth were chattering!!  I didn't bring my iPod, so no idea on the time...

STATS:  3 miles

Tuesday, September 7, 2010

9/7

My run got pushed to the very end of the day today, which meant I didn't want to run too hard, since I'm up before six to go running again.  And to be honest, I just don't have anywhere near the energy at the end of the day that I do first thing in the morning...

Theoretically this was a speedwork day of 8x400-meter repeats, but it was pretty pathetic--my top speed was an 8-minute mile, whereas last time I was at a 7:30 mile.  My main motivation in running today was that I haven't missed a run yet while I've been training for this half; I feel like if I miss one, it will make it easier to skip again.  As long as I can keep my streak going, it's much easier to convince myself to just do it, even if it's not up to the usual standard.  Every little bit helps, right?  And a not-so-fast run is better than no run at all.

At least that's what I'm telling myself today. 

STATS:  4 miles, 8:30ish/mile

Monday, September 6, 2010

9/6

Happy Labor Day!  Mine started off a lot earlier than I'd like for what is supposedly a "vacation" day for the rest of America (goodbye Neil, have a nice day at work...).

On the other hand, running felt great today.  My iPod had a dead battery, so I wasn't worrying about pace (which is good because when I started running the first few strides, I really felt the last two runs).  It was super dark the whole way and cold, but we talked about skiing the entire time and the miles flew by.  I am SO grateful to have my running friend!

STATS:  4.5 miles

P.S. When I got home, Jooj was crying because she'd just woken up from a nightmare about a monster that escaped from the zoo and chased her and bit her on the backside.  She was rubbing her little flowered pants in remembered fear.  Is that not a sad way to wake up when you're three?

Saturday, September 4, 2010

9/4

Easy recovery run today; I'm not really sure how to handle these runs when they're done the day after the long run.  Any advice on that?  My normal schedule is MWF are pace runs, Tuesday is a speedwork day, and Saturday is the long run, but lately it seems like I'm flipping the Friday and Saturday runs, and I'll have to do it again next weekend.  I'd love advice if anyone knows if I should be approaching my Saturday runs differently following a long run Friday.

So normally this would be a pace run, but I really didn't have it in me to do that tonight, especially since I ran at 9 pm after a day of wandering the farmers' market, taking the kids to the zoo and then the playground, then canning three dozen jars of applesauce, plus apple chutney and cranberry-apple relish.  Long day all on my feet.

So I took it really easy--like really, really easy.  Partially because I was tired, and partially because it was completely dark and I couldn't see a car parked across the sidewalk until I was five feet from it.  So I just enjoyed the run and the cool night and the smell of burning leaves and the stars come out.  It really is gorgeous here. 

STATS:  4 miles, 10:13/mile

Friday, September 3, 2010

9/3

We did our long run tonight, since it was the only time we could find someone to watch our kids.  I'm definitely not a fan of the evening long runs; I'm always tired (plus it's hot!).  But better an evening run together than a morning run alone.

Nasty wind tonight--very, very nasty.  It was blowing so hard that I felt like we could have gone faster at a walking pace some of the time.  But on the other hand, the wind kept it cooler (about 66 degrees) so that was the silver lining.

Same long run as the last couple weeks; we'll probably keep running that and just adding length, since it's got a good mix of hills. 

We tried to keep the pace under 9/mile, and were pretty successful most of the time, but we ended up stopping to walk twice and once for water:  stopped around mile 5.5 and walked for a few hundred yards to ease the weird leg cramps from running up the suicide hill against the wind, stopped about mile 7.5 (after running two miles straight into the wind; both of us were having trouble swallowing because our mouths were so dry, so we walked and coughed for a ways, and then we stopped about half a mile after that at a drinking fountain.  Thank goodness, because we were completely parched from the wind; I don't know why either of us didn't think to grab a water bottle.  I'm not too stressed about the stops, since I can't run while I drink anyway (unless I want to be coughing and spitting for the next half mile), so I'll have to walk through the water stops. 

STATS:  9 miles; 8:55ish/mile (started out at 7:52/mile, running around 9: 13/mile at the very end).  Extremely strong winds!!

Wednesday, September 1, 2010

9/1

Easy 3-mile today.  That is, I don't remember if it was supposed to be easy (probably it was a pace run), but I was totally exhausted today.  We started out really fast, and I said to my running buddy, "There's no way I can hold this."  And she laughed and said she was thinking the same thing.

So we ended up jogging more than running.  Plus, there was a TON of traffic, so we had to spend a couple of minutes waiting at the stoplight to cross the highway, which never happens at 6:00 AM.  I guess that's all the students back in town...

I clocked us, but with all the stops it's hard to tell...I think we were right around 9 minutes a mile or so.

On a semi-related note, I decided that I need to get faster not just by training harder, but by ensuring there's less of me to move.  My goal is to lose 6 lbs in the next 6.5 weeks before the half-marathon.  (I've been reading up on ways to increase your speed, and the #1 recommended way is to lose 5 lbs).  So to that end, I'm going to completely cut out dairy (I've still been eating too much cheese, although I'm not eating butter or milk) and eat only fruit after dinner, which is my real pitfall time...something about the kids being in bed and finally having some quiet moments always makes me want to snack, and I'm determined to break that habit.  So I'll start reporting on how I'm doing there too. 

STATS:  3 miles, 9ish/mile?

Tuesday, August 31, 2010

8/31

Last run of the month!  I've run about 93 miles in August.  Not a whole lot if you're training for an ultra-marathon, but it's cool to me, since when I very first started running again after Juliet was born--I hadn't run much since middle school--I was running about 9 miles a week, or under 40 miles a month.    (Of course, the flip side of this is that my shoes wear out a lot faster...)

Today was a 40-minute tempo run (on the treadmill while Jules and Isaac were asleep).  I started out running an 8:50 mile, worked up to an 8-minute mile, and back down again.  I always feel like I'm running much more slowly when I do tempo runs than when I do interval training--it's so much easier for me to do those 400-meter repeats at a faster pace than it is to do a steady build.  Which is why I train with both, I suppose.

STATS:  4.7 miles, 8:28/mile

Monday, August 30, 2010

8/30















Another day, another run.  It was very dark.  There were lots of bugs.  Like every day.

On another note, I really like this image.  What do you think?  Inspiring, or disheartening? 

STATS:  Four miles, 8:36/mile

Saturday, August 28, 2010

8/28

Normally this would be a long run today, but as I mentioned on Tuesday, we're watching another couple's three children today while the wife does a triathalon (they're watching ours when we run the half-marathon).  We have two families that we regularly trade long workouts with, which is really nice. 

So today, since I was up at 4:45 am to go over there while their kids were sleeping, we opted to swap the long weekend run with the shorter midweek run. I was hoping I'd still have time to squeeze in an extra few miles, but I don't think it will happen, so...I'll have to be content with my three.

Today I ran a trail that I haven't run in about four years (to a nearby lake)--and while I was running it I remembered why!  Part of it is just a deer trail, barely room to put one foot in front of the other, and I'm pretty sure it was completely lined with poison ivy.  And then when it opened up, I was running over mud flats and sinking in.  Awesome.  I'll stick to my regular trails from now on, since that definitely slowed me down.

STATS:  3 miles, 8:33/mile, hilly, muddy

As a sidenote, I spent an hour yesterday afternoon (while the kids were napping, when I should have been doing something productive) reading running blogs.  Then I moped around the rest of the day feeling like a loser because I'm not training for a marathon.  I really, really want to run a marathon.  I just keep having to remind myself that I'm barely finding time to run 20 or 25 miles a week; I don't know how I would double that.  Sigh. 

Friday, August 27, 2010

8/27

Easy run today over the bog trail.  My running partner had been up literally all night with kids--she told me that when six am rolled around, she figured she'd just go anyway, despite the fatigue, since she was already up (and had been up since 1 am, after going to bed at 12:30 am due to completely disassembling then reassembling her toilet.  Which she didn't get to start until about 10 pm, because before that she was at my house learning to make mozzarella).  So anyway--I was amazed that she was still there running. Because I probably would have wimped out. 

Anyway, we took it easy for her sake so I didn't bother clocking it, since we walked twice for about a minute, but we were probably running about an 8:45 mile the rest of the time.  I felt great--much more energy than Tuesday's run.  I thought about running another couple of miles after we wrapped up, but since Neil isn't feeling too hot and two of the kids are sick, I figured I better skedaddle on home. 

It was actually cold this morning, and the moon was enormous--it didn't get light until the very end.  Beautiful running conditions, but it's reminding me that not-so-lovely ones are on their way.

STATS:  3 miles, bog loop trail

Thursday, August 26, 2010

8/26

Speedtraining today; 7 x 400-meter repeats.

Alternating between 8 mph for the 400 meters, then 7 mph for the 400 back.

It was doable, but barely.  I don't think I could have gone much past the 400 at 8 mph (7:30 mile).  This is definitely a 5K pace right now rather than a half-marathon pace.

STATS:  3.5 miles; average page 8:00/mile

Tuesday, August 24, 2010

8/24

We're watching our friends' kids on Saturday while the wife does a triathalon, so we did our long run tonight (not ideal, but that's just how it worked out).

We ran mostly the same course that we ran on Saturday, but we were both definitely more tired with more aches and pains--it was a pretty grueling day for both of us today, especially since it's one of the two days a week that Neil goes to the lab at 6:30 am so he can get in lots of quiet worktime before anybody else gets there.  And it was a pretty hectic day here too (doctors' visits in both morning and afternoon, fun fun).

When we first started running I felt terrible.  At the first quarter-mile, I honestly didn't know if I'd be able to finish.  Around a mile and a half, I was focusing on not throwing up (partially because the bog at 8 pm REEKS).  So we detoured for water, and walked for a minute around the drinking fountain, and then I felt a lot better.  We ran steadily for another couple of miles, then down through the glacial ravine and back up again, and when we reached the top of that hill--which honestly, I have never in my life come across a steeper hill on a trail; it's like a total scramble (Happy Hollow to the Indian Trails trailhead, if you're local)--when we got to the top of that, Neil wanted to walk for a minute.  Which is the first time that's ever happened since we've been running together, so that tells you something about how tired we both were.  At this point we were about five miles in.

So we walked for a minute, and then we started running back home again.  We passed a lot of people with grocery sacks in their hands (like seriously a million) and I made some comment about root-beer floats that practically killed Neil for the rest of the run...I think he was dreaming of fizzy happiness for the next three miles.  Poor guy.  I kept saying, "Just remember!  Carbonation is bad for distance running!"  and he would say things like, "But I'm not going to drink it...just eat it."  Then he asked if we could make samosas when we got home.  I guess having Chicago restaurants as our main topic of conversation was kind of a tricky choice...

We detoured for water again, then we started running back through the woods for the final leg, and oh my goodness--it was practically pitch black.  Neil suggested we turn around, but I get really fixated on running a mapped course rather than freestyling...so we just kept going, albeit quite a bit more slowly  I could barely see the ground under my feet, and we kept warning each other about roots and dead branches and exciting things like that.  So that made the end of the run quite exciting, and when we were out of the woods, I was totally in my zone.  Too bad we only had a mile left, right?  By the time we were back in our neighborhood I seriously felt like I could have run forever.  I kept picking up the pace and by the time we hit our driveway, I was running faster than I had the rest of the night.  Go figure.  It only takes 8 miles for me to start feeling good.  Plus it probably helped that it was MUCH cooler by that point.

STATS:  8+ miles, very hilly, trail run, not sure on time (somewhere around 85 minutes with  2 drink and stretching breaks, 1 walking break,  and woods-trail slowdowns)

Monday, August 23, 2010

8/23

Another cool day--such a nice change.  We ran the more boring trail today just to avoid all the bugs (I had one fly into my eye on Saturday which was awful with contacts!) 

STATS:  4 miles, 8:45ish/mile (didn't time, as I still have to re-calibrate, so I was going off the console clock in my car)

Saturday, August 21, 2010

8/21

Best run EVER this morning.  We ran a new route that we haven't done before, and we talked about parenting and goals and creating a more purposeful family the entire time.  At one point when we'd run about four miles, Neil said, "I can't believe we've gone so far--the time has flown by!" and that was pretty much how it was the entire time.  It was great--this is one of the main reasons why I like training, since it's just awesome to have my husband all to myself and do something that energizes us so much (hurray, endorphins!) and talk the entire time and work things out and feel so positive afterwards, both mentally and physically.

Of course, all the talking means we're not running super hard, since we were still talking comfortably, but it was worth it.  And we ran a pretty challenging course today--we parked near the beginning of the bog loop trail, so we ran up the hills to the bog, through the woods, which has some pretty steep hills, up the mogul-type hills by the golf course where the bog has made the sidewalk swell (in moguls), and then we ran downhill for a mile through a glacial ravine, and then back UP that glacial ravine trail, which is steep enough that it's quite difficult to do just on a bike.  There's a bit at the very end where I always feel like my nose is going to bang into my knees.  And then back again over the whole course.

And my shoes were great--my feet didn't hurt at all, and because I was so wrapped up in talking with Neil, I didn't notice the heaviness one bit.  It was seriously a fantastic way to start out the weekend--I LOVE running with my husband.  Love, love, love it.  It's nice to look forward to the long runs so fervently.  :-)

STATS:  8.12 miles, around 9:50ish a mile (definitely under 80 minutes, but we weren't really worrying about time), very hilly

Friday, August 20, 2010

8/20

This morning was one of the days that you just make yourself put one foot in front of another, because you're so tired that all you want to do is curl up on the side of the trail and let the mosquitoes feast.  Or something like that.

I was spitting out gnats the entire way.  I don't know if it's because it's so much darker these days, but man, it's like swirling clouds of bugs.  Crazy stuff.

We were both tired this morning, so I didn't even bother timing us.  Running just felt like a victory (I was up late helping a friend pack up her house; she's moving today to Oregon with four kids in tow, and her husband left for Oregon two months ago.  Talk about a superwoman; I don't know how she's done it).  Anyway.  On with the day.

STATS:  3 miles

Wednesday, August 18, 2010

8/18

Much better this morning!  I was really worried yesterday about the heaviness of the shoes thing, but today was better.  I'll give it another couple of weeks before I decide.  It was also nice to run in the morning again--I have been so utterly exhausted the last two days that the morning runs just haven't happened, and I HATE running later in the day.

It was dark this morning until we were almost done.  Fall is coming--while I'm excited for the cooler temperatures, I'm dreading the inside-all-winter-long runs. 

STATS:  3 miles, didn't time but we were going pretty fast

Tuesday, August 17, 2010

8/17

Today was supposed to be a tempo run, but I ended up running late enough in the day that I had no energy for tempo-ing (about 2:30 pm, after I'd been mowing the lawn).  So I just ran for the specified time while my sister Elise biked along beside me (my mom was home while the kids were napping).

My shoes felt really heavy (probably because of the lawn-mowing and late-in-the-dayness), and I was pretty fixated on that the whole time.  And I definitely need to recalibrate my iPod sensor for the new pouch, because most of the run it was telling me I was running a 9:50 mile, and that I had run much less than I'd actually run.  So that was really depressing and non-motivating, because I felt like I was already running pretty fast.

When I got home, I mapped it out and I'd actually run about 4.06 miles, which gave me an 8:36 mile.  Not great, but not bad either.

STATS:  4.06 miles, 8:36/mile

Monday, August 16, 2010

8/16

On Saturday I went to a technical running store and had my gait analyzed.  Apparently I roll back on my heel, then roll forward onto my toe.  The verdict was that I needed a shoe with a straighter last, a larger toe box, and a half-size larger to give more room for my feet to swell as I ran--which apparently is the most common problem (shoes are too small, then as you run your feet swell and start to hurt from being jammed in).  I ran with my new shoes this morning and didn't have any of the foot pain that I've been having with my old ones, but let me tell you this--all that new support made them feel really heavy.  My feet felt great, but my calves did not (I ended up with Asics Gel Fortitudes, if you're interested.  When I looked them up online later it said they were best for large-framed runners or severe over-pronators; I'm just going to tell myself that my problem is the latter!  :-)  I also got a iPod strap for my arm and a pouch for the Nike + on my laces (I looked at the Nike + shoes, but apparently they're not a good shape for my gait). 

My run today didn't feel so lovely...I was really tired from the weekend and the drive back (we got in about 10 last night and guess what?  all the kids were still awake, which meant it was a loooong drive, since we were stuck in traffic by Chicago).  So I slept in, and then I was just tired as I ran, and when I coughed I had bile come up my throat--all that lovely stuff.

STATS:  3.5 miles, 8:45/mile

Saturday, August 14, 2010

8/14

I did my three-miler today (switched the long run).  As I said yesterday, we were planning to go to the beach today, but the forecast was for rain, so we ended up going last night.  It was utterly perfect, but today when I was running I could feel the fatigue from yesterday.

Since we are at my parents' house, I was running trails that I ran in high school.  Which was kind of cool.  I'm not sure that my iPod mapped me correctly; it was right on for time, but when I was comparing it to mapmyrun later, it seemed like it may have been off, but I couldn't tell for sure because I was running through the woods.  Oh well. 

STATS:  3 miles, 8:36/mile

Friday, August 13, 2010

8/13

I woke up at 5:45 today to go running.  I was out by six, it was so dark I could see about ten feet of sidewalk in front of me.  Fog swirled across the path, and I watched the sun rise.

I ran a mile and a half to the trailhead where I was meeting my running buddy (who ended up being a little late this morning, so I had time to eat the banana I'd carried over, get a drink from the fountain, and run around the trailhead loop).  When she got there, we ran four miles (down to the end of the road and back).  Then we said goodbye and I ran the mile and a half home.  I did the long run today since we're planning to go to the beach tomorrow, and I don't want to fall asleep in the sand. 

Running felt good today, but I did not necessarily feel so good.  This isn't the sort of thing I normally go around talking about, but since it affects my training, we'll just say that it's that time of month, so I am really proud of myself for running at all.  Slow though I was, at least I didn't have to stop and throw up.  My goal today was simple:  just keep running.  Slow is just fine today.

STATS:  7 miles, 9:04/mile

Wednesday, August 11, 2010

8/11

Hills course on the treadmill today (it was thundering this morning); I ran the 5K course with what I think of as "death hills."  Ergh.  I started out at 7.3 mph, then realized after awhile that wasn't going to work the whole time over the hills and dropped down to 7 mph. 

STATS:  3 miles, hills course, 8:34/mile

Tuesday, August 10, 2010

8/10

Speedwork this morning on the treadmill (with a pajama-clad Juliet lying on my bed watching me through sleepy eyes and tousled curls). 

6 x 400 meter repeats (as close as I could tell on the treadmill; basically I just ran for 2 minutes somewhere between 7.5 and 7.7 mph, then ran at 7.1 mph for another 2 minutes and a bit, or until I saw the mileage click over to the half-mile mark, since my treadmill only marks to one decimal place, rather than showing me the .25 interval for 400 meters.  Was that convoluted enough?)

STATS:  3 miles, 8:13/mile

Monday, August 9, 2010

8/9

Another run with the iPod today--the calibration was a little off, but I finally figured out how to reset it using a pre-measured distance (assuming I have a decently accurate reading from mapmyrun.com).

I think Stacie and I swallowed about ten mosquitoes today between us. 

STATS:  3.5 miles, 8:37/mile

Saturday, August 7, 2010

8/7

Three years ago today, I was in labor with Juliet.  Today I ran six miles (hot, long, and boring); I almost think I'd prefer labor if I'd asked for the epidural earlier.

Neil and I were up laaaate last night canning and freezing (yesterday I processed 30 lbs of beans and a case of dilly beans, then Neil and I canned salsa last night when the kids were in bed).  So we didn't really want to get up at 6 am this morning to run, nor did we want to switch off running earlier in the morning, since it was Juliet's birthday and we were doing all the presents and hoopla there.

So I left about 10:30 to start running, and it may have actually been 77 degrees, but man, it felt so hot! When I ran through the woods it was pure bliss to be in the shade.  By the end, I had cold chills, which is never a good sign in the heat...

I finally got my Nike + calibrated and the sensor taped underneath my laces--I ran a mile this morning and it actually measured it as a mile (8:23).  Then I ran another five miles, and it kept turning off on me when I accidentally bumped it or something.  I can see now why everyone straps it to their arm; holding it in your hand or tucking it in your clothes seems to not work with the sensitive sensor.

So I'm not exactly sure how long my 6 miles took me, since I had to restart the workout 4 times, but the first mile was 8:23 and the last mile was 9:09, so if I just average that, it comes out to 8:40/mile.  Not too bad. Now I have to go mow the lawn, since I'm already sweaty.  Need more water!!

STATS:  6 miles, hills, 8:40/mile

Friday, August 6, 2010

8/6

It actually felt a little like fall today!  Sixty degrees--bliss.

My running partner turned back early today, since they wanted to leave for Nauvoo by seven AM.  So I ran the last couple of miles by myself.  I saw tons of wildlife today--everything from a killdeer that flew along in front of me for half a mile to a coyote trotting silently across the trail.  It was a beautiful morning.

STATS:  3 miles; under 27 minutes but not quite sure...

Wednesday, August 4, 2010

8/4

Today I tried to calibrate my Nike + foot pod.  I say "try" because it told me I'd run 1.25 miles when I'd really run 1.5. 

So I tried it all over again, using the instructions' suggestion to calibrate using a workout I'd already completed.  I ran another 1.5 miles and guess what?  This time I'd only run 1.12 miles, according to the sensor.  The cool female voice berated me for running a 12:30 mile.

I got online and typed in "can't calibrate Nike +" and I got about a billion hits.  Apparently these things are very temperamental.  Among my mistakes:
  • taping the sensor to my shoe rather than shelling out $70 for a pair of Nike+ shoes
  • running on a treadmill
  • aligning the sensor vertically rather than horizontally
  • running hills

    So looks like I'll be trying this all over again, which means I have to go to a track.  And decide if I want to buy new shoes (mine are about 3 years old, so they're getting a little battered, but I love them), or jimmy the sensor in my laces somehow.   

    STATS:  3 miles, 8:30/mile or 12:30, take your pick, Steve Jobs. 

Tuesday, August 3, 2010

8/3

Tempo run today, inside on the treadmill.  Neil and I are switching on treadmill days and outside days, although last night when both of us finished work at 11 pm (he was at the lab and I was working at home on my course websites) we decided we'd sleep in instead of getting up at 6 to run, since we weren't in bed until midnight.  So he went running around 7:30 while I got the kids up and breakfast going, then I ran later (while Isaac was napping and after I'd canned tomatoes--busy morning).

Today was the first time I ran with my iPod and I LOVED it!!  It was so awesome.  Can you believe I've been running for 3 years without some music?  It was a lovely change.  :-)

STATS:  3.5 miles, 8:25/mile.  Felt great!

Monday, August 2, 2010

8/2

Another three miles this morning, running through the fog.  It was really gorgeous with the sun rising and the fields of wildflowers (which are now about four feet tall), but then you smelled it and realized it was stinky fog from the celery bog.  So pretty to look at, but not exactly lovely to run through (plus, as my running buddy said, it was like breathing through soup).

I didn't check the time, but we ran at a pretty fast clip this morning, fast enough so that it was difficult to talk.

On another note, if anyone is reading this, and if you're training for anything right now, would you be interested in creating some kind of online forum where we could post about training?  It's always so motivating to me to know what other people are doing; I would love to read about people I actually know rather than the runnersworld.com bloggers.  :-)

STATS:  3 miles

Saturday, July 31, 2010

7/31

There's something just wrong about getting up at 6 am on a Saturday to go run in the drizzle, but up we got.
My running buddy came over at 6:15 to watch our kids (we're trading back and forth; I'm going over there tonight) so that Neil and I could go together.

This was our first long run; we ran 3 miles down to campus and 3 miles back.  It was beautifully cool for a change, and thanks to the sprinkling rain, it felt like practically zero humidity.  We ran all the hills we could find, including the big one by campus.  The elevation change is 135 feet; the elevation change on the first half-marathon hill looks to be about 150 feet, so I'm hoping that if we just keep running this hill every week that the half-marathon hill won't be so bad. 

Actually, that hill was much easier than I expected.  I'm hoping this is a good sign--I didn't ever feel like I needed to stop and walk, and I didn't have any cramps or twinges in my legs.  The callus on my left foot started to bother me at the end of the run, so I'm wondering if I should go see if there's something I can do about that...

We went pretty slow this morning, since we were both tired (and did I mention a bunch of hills?).  I'm going to calibrate my Nike sensor this week so that I can actually start telling how fast we're going, instead of checking watches every so often.

STATS:  6 miles, a little under an hour but I'm honestly not sure

Friday, July 30, 2010

7/30

Another 3-miler today, same trail.  A little slower, since I was pretty tired...

STATS:  3 miles, 26ish minutes

Wednesday, July 28, 2010

7/28

Another training run today, but again, with Neil--nice to be with him, although both of us were groggy enough that we didn't really talk much.  We cut across a field near our house, looped the bog, then ran through the woods trails.  It was hot and muggy and the trail was littered with all kinds of branches from the most recent storm, so our pace wasn't as quick as it would have been on a level track, but I wanted to run more hills, so the woods were good for that.

I'm wondering if I should bump up the "recommended" mileage to my normal mileage--I feel like I'm backtracking by only running 3 miles where I'm used to doing 5.  Then again, I'm adding in another 2 runs a week--one speedwork and one long run, so I guess it all works out.  I've also been going to bed pretty late with my family here, so I've been tired enough that the short runs are very welcome. 

STATS:  3 miles, hilly trail runs, 26 minutes for 8:40/mile

Tuesday, July 27, 2010

7/27

Happy birthday to me!  I started it off bright and early running 400 meter repeats.  Since my family was here, Neil and I were able to go together--which was fun.

STATS:  5x400 repeats

Monday, July 26, 2010

7/26

First day of half-marathon training, hurray!!

Best part:  we were only supposed to do a three-mile run today.  Three miles!!  So short!!  It was like a vacation.  Seriously, it was awesome.  I ran right up the first hill grinning to myself and thinking, "Haha, I get to turn around in half a mile!"

STATS: 3 miles, 26 minutes, about 8:40 per mile (not counting the time we spent waiting at the stoplight, so maybe more like 8:25/mile?)  Low hills on bog loop trail.

Friday, July 23, 2010

7/23

SO hot today!  We have a severe heat warning here, and I could already feel it at 6 am.  It was pretty miserable.  I read on runnersworld.com that you should slow your pace thirty seconds a mile for every 5 degrees over 65, so we slowed it down today and it was still hard to breathe through the heat and humidity. 

My running partner is still recovering from vacation, so I ran another 1.16 miles when I got home so that I could get in some more miles and pick up my pace.

STATS:  5.16 miles, no idea on pace because we stood around talking afterwards.  I am really excited for my birthday present so I can track my pace!!!  (I did run a lot faster when I got home...)

Wednesday, July 21, 2010

7/21

No run today--the 24 gnat bites I got while picking beans after my Monday-morning run ended up being a bit problem--apparently I'm allergic to gnats.  So I'm doped up on antihistamines and wobbling my dizzy way around the house...running is not in the cards today. 

Monday, July 19, 2010

7/19

A pretty leisurely run this morning--my running buddy is home now and it was her first run in a month, so we didn't really push. 

It was hot and miserable and it felt like running through an oil slick at 6:30 am.  When I got home I picked beans for twenty minutes and accumulated about 20 new insect bites.  Argh!  So ready for fall's cooler temperatures...

STATS:  Four miles, easy run, not sure on time but it was pretty slow...

Friday, July 16, 2010

7/16

I ran outside this morning for the first time in 3 weeks--my running buddy didn't show up, but I was glad I'd gone anyway.  It's good to have my run over by 7 am.

I really wish I had a GPS watch or some way of tracking my pace.  This morning I ran 4 miles in about 35 minutes, which more than a minute and a half slower than I run on the treadmill.  I know it doesn't seem like a big deal, but it's frustrating to add that extra thirty seconds per mile, because I KNOW I could run faster if I knew, you know?  I don't want to shell out the $300 for a GPS watch, however, so I think I'll look into more affordable options.

In other news, since I was running by myself this morning I ran on a path near the road, rather than the woods.  And surprisingly enough, there are people driving by at 6:30 am who are more than happy to honk and catcall.  Which after three kids, is kind of good for my self-esteem, in a weird sort of way.

STATS:  4 miles, 8:45 per mile, flattish paved course

Wednesday, July 14, 2010

need another blog

Do I really need yet ANOTHER blog?

Probably not, but I want someplace to record my running info so I don't bore everyone on my regular blogs.

I signed up this morning for two more races:  the Indy half-marathon on October 16th and a 10K on Sept. 18th. 

I have about two weeks before I need to start hard-core training for the half-marathon.  My running buddy has been out of town for three weeks, so I haven't been doing my regular 5-mile runs outside.  Instead, I've been working on speedwork and hills on the treadmill inside.  Boring and I hate the treadmill and I hate running at home with the kids running around (always makes me feel guilty) but hopefully I'll be faster and stronger when I get back outside!

Today I'm doing an easy run:  4 miles with alternating hill intervals (level 4 and level 0) every two minutes at 7 mph (roughly 8:34 per mile).

My half-marathon goal time is 1:55, which works out to about 8:46 per mile.  If I can run 8-minute miles on the flat parts and 8:30 miles on the hills during training, I will be in great shape for my goal pace.  Right now I can run about two and half miles at 8 minutes per mile before I need to slow it down to 8:30 miles; the hills courses I've just run at 8:34 throughout.  I can tell I definitely need to do more hills, because it is not very fun at all. 

Stats for today:  4 miles (treadmill), hills course level 1, 8:34 per mile.