Lessons Learned: Training Weeks 1 & 2

I started off the first week of training well. I had two shorter runs that were great but then we all know how disastrously the last run I blogged about went.  Since that last run I haven’t stepped a foot into my sneakers! I’ve been traveling for work, preparing for vacation and am just plain exhausted! It’s a horrible excuse – “I’m too tired to exercise” – because as so many of us know, once you get out there and just start doing something, you find the energy you thought you were lacking.  But, I’m almost halfway through Training Week 3 and don’t have any miles to show for it.  Disappointing?  Yes!  But, vacation starts in two days and luckily I’ll be with my mom and sister, who are both great at running with me or encouraging me to run.  I’m hoping I’ll get some good workouts in each day, in between beach time and sleeping!

Here are some lessons I learned these past two weeks:

Lesson 1: The Olympics are a great motivator! Never in my life have I watched the track & field events with such interest.  Those runners are amazing!  Not only the sprinters, who seem to get all of the attention, but the distance runners.  It kept me motivated to get outside and run.

Lesson 2: Watching the Olympics does not make me a better runner.  I’d be so excited to run while watching the Olympics and then I’d get on the treadmill or out on the road and realize I am not an Olympic athlete!  Those people train hard and I am sure that their training does not include sitting on the couch, night after night, watching other people running, swimming, diving, or playing beach volleyball.  If only fitness worked through osmosis.

My new role model!!



Running is Hard!

Ok, that might be the most obvious title in the world. But, something interesting happened to me today. I started training for the ½ again this week and got two 30-minute runs done fairly easily on Tuesday and Thursday. I knew I needed to get a longer run in this weekend and this morning I woke up determined to do it today. The weather was a little cooler (93 degrees instead of 107) and I thought a late afternoon run would be no problem whatsoever. After all, I ran 9 miles just a few weeks ago. Six miles would be no sweat, right??

Boy was I wrong!  That was one of the hardest, least enjoyable runs I’ve ever had! At one point in time I walked for such a long time that I was able to text my blog buddy Dru to tell her what a horrible run I was having!  The highlight of my run was seeing a lizard (I’m not kidding)! So, what went wrong?

Timing: I usually do my long runs first thing in the morning. I’m not a morning person, so I’ve always thought this was a bad idea. Now I wonder if it makes it easier for me to get more miles done because I’m too sleepy to give it that much thought!

Training: Not only have I not run since the 15K, I haven’t done a lick of weight training or yoga. I’m a firm believer that both of those activities help me be a better runner. Clearly I’ve got to get those back into the training routine.

Desire: I was giving myself a hard time about walking so much, and kept trying to push myself to run through one more song, or one more block, but I just kept stopping and walking. I realized I just didn't care to run the whole thing. 

I find it really interesting that Dru and I have both had hard runs in the past few weeks. But, we’re still getting out there and pounding the pavement. So, for all of you out there who don’t think you can run a mile, 5 miles, or a half-marathon, please believe me – you can!  What was it that fancy shoe company used to say all the time? Oh yeah, just do it!

Time to Train - Again!

I’m ashamed to say it’s been three weeks since my last run and almost two months since my last blog post. My running/blogging partner Dru has been doing an amazing job lately at both, making me look like a giant slacker in the process! I’m so proud of her for continuing to run, especially through the heat and humidity we are all experiencing. I’m struggling to get back into my running shoes, so I’m looking to her for inspiration!  Here’s quick recap of the last two months:

I trained for and ran my fist 15K!  For those of you counting, that’s 9.3 miles. I thought it was just 9 miles and am so glad my mom told me about those extra .3 miles. If I hadn’t known I would have been pretty ticked off when I crossed mile 9 with no finish line!  Training for the 15K wasn’t that much fun, but I’m proud that I did it.  What’s the easiest way to stick to your training schedule? Tell every single person you see that you have to run the next day. Once you tell everyone, you sort of feel like you have to follow through. Or at least I did. Running the 15K was a lot of fun, surprisingly! The weather in Texas cooperated and wasn’t blazing hot. There were plenty of water/Gatorade stops along the way. The only bad part was that I dropped my phone and cracked the screen. Clearly I need to buy one of those little iPod shuffles to clip onto my shirt for the half. After the run, I rewarded myself with a super adorable, gold-striped phone case, so at least my phone looks good on the outside!

After the 15K I decided to take a 2-week break from running.  I’d been training for 2 months, so that is 2 full months of not sleeping in on the weekend.  I am a girl who loves her sleep. I could easily sleep 9 hours a night if my dog and work schedule allowed for it.  Sadly, neither does very frequently. So, I definitely appreciated having a few weekend mornings to devote to sleep.

Our half is just 11 weeks away (ok, just typing that scares me!!) so I’ve got to get my shoes out of the closet, set my alarm clock and start running again. I’m kind of excited about it...I actually find myself thinking about running a lot. Now I just need to do it!

It's all in a name...

Well, it’s official that I have (appropriately, I might add) changed my profile name to appear as dru “remind me why I’m doing this again” howard.  Now, it’s just a screen name, but to me “runs like the wind” was just not fitting.  In fact, in Salem this June, July, and August, I’m not sure I even remember what the wind feels like anymore, but I’m pretty sure if I did I wouldn’t be running like it. 

I could have changed it to “runs like the humidity” because I am familiar with that feeling lately and it’s slow, and sticky, and annoying, and well, you get the point.  But for now, I am what I am.

Shoe Update:

Shoes are working well.  My old blisters have healed (though I do have a new blister, however, I blame that on grabbing and wearing the wrong pair of socks the first day I ran in the new shoes) and my toes no longer hurt.  Time will tell if I can actually grow toenails back while wearing them, but for now, it appears as if they will not cause me to lose toenails even after my first long run in them this morning. 

Which brings me to the next topic – Today’s Long Run:

First, let me begin by saying that our 5am runs are really catching on.  There were actually 7, yes 7 of us running this morning and when we started there were only 3.  We are taking the streets of Salem by storm and I like it!  New runners and old runners and just socialization in general really do make running so much more fun. 

I blogged last week about how exhausted I was after my long run last Friday, but how I did it…yada, yada, yada.  Well, today was much different.  My run was mostly NOT enjoyable though I was never almost eaten alive by a vicious dog.  I did have to walk several intervals, and there were just so many challenges.  I told myself I would not dwell on it after this post, but I think it’s good to remind myself why I think I had this type of morning so I don’t do this again.

Here goes…things that, I believe, led to a crappy run (no pun intended…well, kind of intended).

1.    Extreme humidity at 5am. Bleh!

2.    Not eating – it turns out I ate my dinner at 4:30pm Thursday and then ate nothing else that night or this morning until after my run.

3.    Not consuming nearly enough water the day or hours before my run.  I ended up sitting in an unairconditioned barn for 4 hours the previous night, sweating excessively and not replenishing my fluids.

4.    Not enough sleep – got 5.5 hours compared to my usual 7-8 hours the night before.

5.    The annoyingly present and then all of a sudden super-urgent need to have a bathroom break (or code orange as we call it in the Salem Running Club) mid-run.  I would like to take the time to give a shout out to a.) Doug for spotting and securing the bathroom location and b.) the Hocker Oil/Gas+ attendant for letting me stop and use the facilities and then reminding me as I ran out the door that I had a LOT of people running around in circles waiting for me.

So, there you have it…the quick version of my frustrating run.

But there is always another day and I plan to run in the morning and attempt 8 miles next Friday so I will try to avoid setting myself up for what happened today.

NEW SHOES!!!

My new running shoes.  I am so super stoked to try these out for the first time tomorrow.  Well, actually I'm wearing them around and about right now just to "break them in," but tomorrow will be my first run in them. 



Yesterday, I ventured to Springfield in search of new shoes and it was also my first trip into an actual running store.  I spent the time and effort to be properly measured, fitted, have a gait analysis, etc and after all that, they recommended....the exact same shoe I already use.  I actually did LOL.  Although I did find out, I was wearing a 1/2 size too small in that brand, even though it was already an entire size larger than I typically wear. 

It was tempting to just get the larger size of the shoe I was currently wearing because it felt comfortable and normal.  However, the only thing comfort and normalcy have gotten me in the shoe department is two missing toe nails, chronic blood blisters/bruised toenail beds, and blisters.  It really was time for a change. 

As promised.

This morning, at about 5:30ish, around 3 miles into my run, a super supportive and accomplished runner, that also happens to be the Uncle of my fellow blogger says, "Hey, I haven't read any new blog posts lately."  After an explanation of how I've been blogging less and running more, I realized I probably needed to update on my progress  So, I promised if I made it to 7 miles this morning (my longest distance so far), that I would make a post.  That being said...this one's for you Ken.

I made it to 7 miles this morning.  I wanted to feel ecstatic about it after I was done, but I felt tired and sweaty.  However, 6 miles has been my mental block for the last 6-8 weeks.  I haven't made it past that and I haven't even felt like trying.  But seeing as the 1/2 is only 11 weeks away, I thought I might ought to motivate myself to do more.

But, this morning's run was far from normal, aside from the distance.  The following events occurred in the 75 minutes that I was running:

1. Was barked at, snarled at, and almost attacked by a rottweiler looking dog around mile 1.5 as "Killing Me Softly" played on my ipod.
2. Saw a deer (that at first glance looked like a creepy shadow in the woods - *still paranoid and scared after the dog incident*) around mile 2.5.
3. Ran past Wal-Mart sliding doors to steal a little bit of air conditioning around mile 3.  Okay, okay, this actually is not that uncommon of an occurrence on our morning runs.
4. Frolicked through the sprinklers at the Town & Country Bank branch to cool off around mile 3.5.  Confession:  this happens as much as possible - I LOVE (actually, all of my female running buddies LOVE) the T&C Bank sprinklers.  I would like to urge The Bank of Salem and US Bank to install sprinklers as well, and if you're ever driving through town early in the morning and happen upon our little sprinkler ritual, pay no attention to random females dancing around said sprinklers.
5. "Don't Stop Believing" started playing around mile 4.1 which completely renewed my motivation.  Because in reality, who wants to disappoint Journey.
6. Chased down a trash man around mile 5.  Well, that was actually only Doug, but it was confusing and definitely out of the norm.
7. "Stronger.  What doesn't kill you..." came on around mile 5.5 as I was finally able to relax every time I heard a dog bark and joke about incident #1.
8. Almost run over by a cyclist (in SALEM!) around mile 6.5 even though I believe he was yelling, "coming through!" over and over as he approached.  Damn ear buds and motivational music - they are a hazard.
9. My watch beeped 7.0 miles, my feet immediately stopped and I was glad to be done. 

So, all in all a pretty eventful morning - and that was just before the sun came up.  Not sure I'll run tomorrow, but if I do, it will be a brief and relaxing run, hopefully.

Oh, and as I type this my husband (who never needs/wants my attention during TV time) suddenly has 1,000 things to ask me about so here's my shout out to him and his pizza! :) 

Until next time

Nothing New to Report

The title really says it all, but I put, "Write a Blog Post" on my to-do list this weekend and almost everything else was checked off the list so it's this or fold and put away the laundry and I pick this.

Recently, I have decided to do some reflecting on my reasons for running as I have been feeling so-so about running in general.  But, I say it's only been so-so because I could think of no new really exciting milestones that have happened and my distance progress is somewhat stagnant.  However, this morning, as I was on a 3.5 miler (that started out with the intent of being a 5-6 miler) my reflections came full circle and I realized that I don't need to set the world on fire every time I get out there (and besides that, Salem is under a burn ban because of the drought so it would be dangerous to set anything on fire). As I reached 3.5 miles, I felt tired and a bit bored running, so I walked.  This typically would have been a major upset to me, but walking felt great.  It was hot.  I ran 6.25 miles the day before.  I needed to walk.  The world did not end. 

So, here are my my running reflections on the things (not necessarily running related) that I have accomplished in the past month or so of my running "funk" and/or just reasons in general for running.

1. I am NOT good at organized sports or any physical activity that requires a great deal of attention, practice, or equipment.  Never have been.  Running is easy - it's mostly free - only attention needed is for watching for cars at intersections.  I can do that! 

2. The competition in the sport of running is as much or as little as you want it to be.  I am not a fast runner and no matter, I enjoy just finishing a run regardless of how far or fast I go.  The end is the best part.

3. Running is a social event and I like to talk.  In fact, I love running and chatting (as long as I can catch my breath and I am not running up a hill).  I have made new friends, formed bonds, and look forward to seeing my running buddies almost daily. 

4. Running offers a good time to just "be" and also be away from the chaos that can sometimes take over my life with work, two small children, and a household to run.  So, when I don't feel like talking, I can just breathe and think.

5. Running burns a TON of calories.  I can eat those calories back and not gain weight.  The more I run, the more I can eat...this might be my favorite reason for running. 

6.  I feel like Super Woman when I power up East Salem Hill and then run in the middle of the road all the way down 4th Street at 5am.  If you've lived in Salem, you know where I'm talking about.  It looks impossibly daunting as you approach it and then once you're at the top, it feels kick ass!  On a good day, I have even been known to throw my arms out (airplane style) and spin around in the middle of the intersection - I have witnesses.

7. I am an addict.  There, I said it.  I may complain about how hard a particular run is or how I feel not quite right during a run, but at the end of the day...I feel better when I get my tush out of bed early and get in a run.  If I don't, I miss it.  I crave the extra energy (and the extra food) that I have all day when I make the effort.  I need to run!

So, as I begin to bump up my weekly mileage from averaging around 15-16 miles/week to 20 or more/week, I shall try to remember all of these things and keep on keeping on!