matchy, matchy

A quick update on the rest of the week's running:  Thursday 4.5mi in 45 min.  And I saw Marathon Man again...this time were were wearing the same thing, no joke.  Black headband (it was cold!), green fleece, and black pants.  The only difference, he wore gloves.  It's not really that hard to match someone tho.  Every time I'm at the gym there is at least one other person that is wearing the same colors...but what makes me laugh about this is that it wasn't just anyone, it was MM and in my head, we're friends.  :)  

Today I did another 7.5mi in 1:18, which is slower than I'd like to be at...but it's okay for now.  I was thinking of doing 9.2mi but just didn't have it in me today.  I'm hoping to get a lot of mileage in this next week before heading out for the weekend to visit my cousins in MN.  I'm not sure I'll get a long run in...it would have to be on Thursday.  We'll see.  Not to worry, faithful blog followers, I'll keep you posted.  ;)

not a good week

Don't get me wrong. I've had a really great week, at work, hanging with friends, middle school... But it has not been a good week for running. In fact, Sunday's walk around the lake is my only workout for this week. (the shame, the horror...the gnashing of teeth!!!!)

It all started on Monday...when I forgot my running shoes. I was going to make a stop at the gym but when I went to get changed, I realized I was missing an important part of my gear. My worn out old Rocket Dogs are just not fit for running... That combined with a girlfriend coming over early after work for small group made for an evening with no run.

Tuesday, after having dinner with two, well, three if you count their daughter, which I do. So after having dinner with three good friends, we got sucked into the vortex of American Idol. They have FINALLY narrowed it down and this is when it gets interesting. So, I forgo-ed another workout.

Last night, I don't really have a good reason. It was the usual Middle School night. Lots of craziness, running around, all to the soundtrack of Europe's Final Countdown (which will be stuck in my head for days...). Then the night was turned over to me when I taught from the Youth Alpha course on "How does God Guide Us?" It was interesting to review my life and see how God has been guiding me in many ways and to be able to share that with the kids and staff. Brian (the MS pastor) took notes and informed me that we could debrief it on Friday. Can't wait. I had great feedback so I hope he won't be too harsh.

Now I must get back to it tonight. I plan on hitting up the lake route (maybe 4.5, maybe 6.2) tonight after work. It's a bit chilly but at least it's light out!!!

Oh, one other update. I'm no longer participating in the race on Sunday (much disappointment). I have some responsibilities at church that I need to be around on Sunday. These things are all very exciting and important but I'm a little bummed about not getting to attend the race on Sunday.

a nice "warm" day

Today's run was awesome!  It was 55deg, bright sunshine, some wind...but the wind felt really good.  I did the same 7.5mi loop but for some reason I was a minute slower today than last week.  No worries, it's not that big of a deal.  I hadn't done anything Thursday night (I went to a play that some of my girls were in then hung out with their families for a while...no time for the gym) or Friday night (I was feeling off and just did want to go to the gym so I didn't).  So again, I was ready to go today!

With the weather being so nice this weekend and daylight savings, I really hope to get some runs in outside next week.  Especially hoping for Monday night and Thursday night...but we'll see.  Spring in NE...you never know what the weather will be like...  

Oh, I saw marathon man again today (twice).  The first time he passed me and we commented to one another about the weather.  The second time he just said hi! and sped on past.  One of these times I'm gonna ask him if he really is running a marathon...  and if so, what tips he's got for me!  :)

The rest of today will be spent with some of my favorite girls.  The 9th grader I mentor and her two sisters.  This weekend is the marriage retreat for the church so their folks are away for the night.  Good excuse to hang out with some really great girls.  Good times...  

for the record

Yesterday: 5miles in 50min.  Felt good, strong.  Enjoyed the run.

Today: 3.5miles in 38min.  Could barely get my legs moving.  Had about zero energy.  Had to walked .5 after running 2.5 then ran the last half mile.  Realized it might have something to do with not having any carbs or protein and very little fat at lunch...  Or maybe I'm just tired and having an off day.  Probably some of both.

Will do a Jillian Michaels workout tomorrow (thanks for the tip, Katrina!) and Friday will do the eliptical.  Saturday should be nice and will shoot for another 7.5miler.

good kind of sore

It's official. I'm ready for winter to be over. I'm tired of the snow. I'm very tired of the cold. I do, however, enjoy days off from work on account of the snow...so, I suppose I can't complain too much.

Due to the fact that I didn't have to go anywhere, I didn't. I stayed at home and totally vegged out! I didn't even go to the gym. Although, I knew I needed to get a workout in somehow. I found a Tae Bo Cardio workout on Youtube that was about 45min long or so. I did it once, realized how completely uncoordinated I am then did it again. I figured I'm used to doing cardio for longer than 45min so I might as well to twice. I mean, after the first time I didn't really feel like I had done much (probably because I couldn't really keep up with the video....) .

Well, this morning I realized that it had done it's job! I worked out muscles that haven't been worked out in a long time. They are a little sore today! But it's the good kind of sore...the kind that when you stretch, it feels realllllly good. I like that kind of sore.

Anywho, back to work today and back to the gym today. I'm shooting for about 5.5-6mi this afternoon. Then I'll have to head back to the church to film my testimony. This time the video will be used for Faithlift, a women's seminar event, in a couple of weeks. And it will hopefully not be filmed 5inches from my face... :)

"where you goin'?"

Hooray!!!  That was my cheer for completing my longest run yet!  7.5mi yesterday at a 10:23min/mile pace for a total time of 1:18:41.  It's not the best...but let me explain the conditions.  It was about 35deg and sunny, which I actually enjoy very much.  However, there was also a 15mph wind that was against me for about 3/4 of the time.  The only time it wasn't was on the pretty side of the lake.  I enjoyed that part.  :)  

As I slowed up for my cool down just after passing my house, this guy runs by with his Boston Marathon 2008 jacket on and says, "where're you going?"  I said, "dude, I already went!"  It made me smile to think about the running community and got me excited to begin group runs and participate in more races.  I love it!!

Up until this point I have not had any injuries or pulled muscles...but over the past week, I did something to my right calf and it starts to cramp up during the last half of my runs this past week.  I took Friday off in the hopes that it would feel better and it did, but it started stiffening up again yesterday at mi 5 or so.  Kind of frustrating...

I'm thinking of hitting up the eliptical at the gym today for a nice easy work out.  Tomorrow we'll hit the treadmill again, hoping for 5mi, obv depending on how my leg feels.

a day of rest

Well, I've racked up 14mi so far this week. Feeling pretty good about that! Tomorrow will be my long run (7.4mi) so I'm taking today off. Instead I have some grocery shopping to do, maybe stop at the Apple Store, possibly head over to Sports Authority....

I joined Nike+ online , which I thought was going to be a place where I could just plug in my miles and times but it turns out that in order to log in runs you have to get this gadget that syncs with an iPod. It logs how many miles, your time, mile splits, and you can download music that matches your speed. Which I guess is pretty cool...I haven't gotten it before because I thought you needed to use it with Nike shoes (which I don't like). In recent reviews, though, it turns out you can use it with any shoe you want! Very exciting... So this is the reason behind the visit to the Apple Store.

I've also read that it will be very helpful on long runs (like over an hour and more) to bring along a supply of power packed bars, GU and drinks. I've wondered how I could bring all this stuff along with me. I mean, I don't like to carry anything when I run...even carrying my iPod throws me off. :) Well, in some online hunting I found out that most runners wear...fanny packs! Oh dear. Not to fear, there are some pretty sweet ones out there that are sleek and wicking and all that good stuff. I refuse to revert to the style of fanny pack that was popular in the early '90s. (I distinctly remember having one that was neon green...) And this is the reason behind the visit to Sports Authority.

Also in this post, I've learned how to link things...so enjoy visiting the gmap-pedometer map of my long run tomorrow as well as the Nike+ site. :)