My friend and follower (that sounds very cultish), Miss Erin, posted a cute entry on her blog this month, which I am blatantly stealing to end the year. The idea is to take the first sentence, of the first blog post, of each month, and make that today's post. Of course, I haven't even been at this a year, but here goes. (Note: some months the literal first sentence is just to note the correct date of the run. I skipped that sentence for this post.)
May: Well, I actually just finished Day 3 and have decided I am definitely going to blog this experience, which I had considered, but didn't think I would really do (and I may not continue)...Now, I'm going to backtrack and record some thoughts leading up to today.
June: I didn't get to walk out the 10K route today.
July: It took some psyching up to get out there today.
August: First, let me set the scene.
September: Yesterday the weather forecast for today was pretty dire.
October: Today my goal was to go for 24 minutes.
November: No matter how much you love running on vacation, and no matter how desperately you wanted to run down the neutral ground in the Garden District in New Orleans, and no matter how hard you worked to squeeze your running shoes in your suitcase, you will never, never, never, ever, ever feel like going for a run while you are in New Orleans.
December: Day 8 (Monday): Rest Day. Ack.
Well, I have gone from not being able to run 2 minutes on Day 1 to being able to run 61 minutes 205 days later...to being too scared to run 36 days after that.
This definitely gave me something to do when I was unemployed...and a reason to shower and do laundry during that time. I was going to say, a reason to avoid being a total alcoholic, but as I understand it, some running clubs are founded around alcohol, so I guess it was just sheer good healthy living that prevented the alcoholism.
I saw the sun more than I have in decades (cumulatively), I ran in rain, dark, at dawn, heat, cold, wind, butterfly plagues, worms, slug trails, survived dog "bites," dog chases, and a lot of dog barking, as well as hillbillies. (Survival of the hillbillies is always a struggle, but it's harder when you leave the house every day.) I never did see a snake. Yet.
I've learned a bit of patience, a mantra of just putting one foot in front of the other no matter what is going on, that I can workout hard and not eat dead animals, and that I have less and less desire to be involved in races or around other runners. It happens with all my hobbies - I don't strive at *clears throat* the ripe age of 21 to run a 4 minute mile or a two hour marathon. I'm not interested in ultramarathons or eating mashed potatoes out of a bag I store in my bra to survive a run. I'm not interested in "drinking" a gel pack, so full of chemicals I assume it makes your puke glow at the finish line. I am not interested in puking at a finish line, or puking in general. (Although my brother puking at the finish line is still hysterical.) While I'm quite thrilled with my 40 minute 5Ks, I do want them to be faster, to avoid the embarrassment of defeat by walkers if I ever do a race. My point is, I don't care to be the best runner, I'm just enjoying the healthiness it's adding to my life.
Unless it's attempting to kill me, which I hope to resolve sooner than later, because on a 70 degree New Year's Eve, with the sun shining, I really would rather be out for a run.
Friday, December 31, 2010
Thursday, December 30, 2010
Running is a Headache
Awhile back I mentioned I needed to do some research on exercise headaches, because I have been getting some killer headaches after my runs. I expected to find stuff like, everybody gets them, so drink more water and take an aspirin...Unfortunately, I was a bit dismayed at the level of seriousness of the articles I read.
Of course, there are two categories: the non-serious, and the serious. I tend to think mine fall into the non-serious category based on what I read. I have a history of headaches, I don't vomit or lose consciousness (although going to bed is the only way to get rid of them). I did see one page list nausea under the symptoms for the serious, not just vomiting, and I do get nauseous, every time. Everything said that most headaches are caused from working out in heat and humidity, but mine started after it cooled off. Of course, because I physically HATE being cold.
My running is officially on hiatus. Which totally sucks because it's going to be 60 degrees today. At 8am it was already 50. I want to run today so freaking bad. I KNEW running was going to kill me.
I'm going to go back through my blog to see how much I noted the headaches...I know I haven't been doing yoga much lately, but hopefully I can still do it without a headache. It seems like I did have one after a yoga recently. *sigh*
There were some good tips that I would like to try, but I feel pretty strongly about seeing a doctor first.
Cooling down - before I started trying the 5K, there was a built in cool down period in my plan. When I was trying to do a 5K, I usually ended up stopping and walking some distance home. But once I've been able to run farther, I don't cool down. I even wondered if that may be the problem previously.
Taking an ibuprofen before workout - I don't take ibuprofen, but there have been times when I have taken acetaminophen before running. I couldn't say now how much that helped. The ibuprofen suggestion is based on the idea that it is a blood vessel issue causing the headaches.
Eating after workout - Ahh, another strong possibility. I know you are supposed to eat within an hour of working out. A lot of times I was really good about making a milkshake, or having a sugar drink, or sometimes actually eating immediately after a run. But, I haven't been doing that lately....when I finish a run, I come in and sit down, exhausted (no cool down), and I don't get up for quite awhile. I definitely am not getting a sugar or starch boost within an hour.
With all the notes I make, and all the bloggage, I wish I had kept a better record of this..Because when I think about cooling down, and raising the blood sugar, I think those are most likely my problem areas. If you've ever been around me when I am really, really hungry, and can't find food, you know I am strongly affected by blood sugar drops. Although, usually I just get violent and unable to think straight, not so much with the headaches.
Anyway, I'm hoping I can skip seeing my doctor and just get referred to a specialist, but even so, the tests will be expensive. I'll have to wait a little while before I can take this on. So, I'll see what I can do in the way of yoga for now, and will continue to assume there is nothing serious wrong...but not push my luck either!
Of course, there are two categories: the non-serious, and the serious. I tend to think mine fall into the non-serious category based on what I read. I have a history of headaches, I don't vomit or lose consciousness (although going to bed is the only way to get rid of them). I did see one page list nausea under the symptoms for the serious, not just vomiting, and I do get nauseous, every time. Everything said that most headaches are caused from working out in heat and humidity, but mine started after it cooled off. Of course, because I physically HATE being cold.
My running is officially on hiatus. Which totally sucks because it's going to be 60 degrees today. At 8am it was already 50. I want to run today so freaking bad. I KNEW running was going to kill me.
I'm going to go back through my blog to see how much I noted the headaches...I know I haven't been doing yoga much lately, but hopefully I can still do it without a headache. It seems like I did have one after a yoga recently. *sigh*
There were some good tips that I would like to try, but I feel pretty strongly about seeing a doctor first.
Cooling down - before I started trying the 5K, there was a built in cool down period in my plan. When I was trying to do a 5K, I usually ended up stopping and walking some distance home. But once I've been able to run farther, I don't cool down. I even wondered if that may be the problem previously.
Taking an ibuprofen before workout - I don't take ibuprofen, but there have been times when I have taken acetaminophen before running. I couldn't say now how much that helped. The ibuprofen suggestion is based on the idea that it is a blood vessel issue causing the headaches.
Eating after workout - Ahh, another strong possibility. I know you are supposed to eat within an hour of working out. A lot of times I was really good about making a milkshake, or having a sugar drink, or sometimes actually eating immediately after a run. But, I haven't been doing that lately....when I finish a run, I come in and sit down, exhausted (no cool down), and I don't get up for quite awhile. I definitely am not getting a sugar or starch boost within an hour.
With all the notes I make, and all the bloggage, I wish I had kept a better record of this..Because when I think about cooling down, and raising the blood sugar, I think those are most likely my problem areas. If you've ever been around me when I am really, really hungry, and can't find food, you know I am strongly affected by blood sugar drops. Although, usually I just get violent and unable to think straight, not so much with the headaches.
Anyway, I'm hoping I can skip seeing my doctor and just get referred to a specialist, but even so, the tests will be expensive. I'll have to wait a little while before I can take this on. So, I'll see what I can do in the way of yoga for now, and will continue to assume there is nothing serious wrong...but not push my luck either!
Wednesday, December 29, 2010
Fitness Challenge Day 13.......
....I guess...
So one day, long, long ago, I went for a run. I made notes after the run which include "Saturday," and "not sore from yoga." So, I shall presume since my last post was Friday, December 3, and I announced I wasn't getting out of bed the next day from yoga, that this run day was Saturday, December 4. I may as well go ahead and note, this was the last time I ran or otherwise worked out, as I got incredibly busy with the holidays, and working, and interviewing and, yes, finally getting a full-time job, which I start next Monday. My new boss is a half-marathoner who once ran a race in a hurricane. The water was up to her mid-calf at the starting line. I shall feel like a wuss every time we discuss our runs.
I feel bad about not finishing out the 30 day fitness challenge. I wanted to work out many times, but never did it. However, despite living off cookies some days, I maintained my goal weight and am finishing off the year 15-20 lbs lighter than last year (it was about this time last year that I started working out regularly to get that 15-20 lbs off)!
Before I get into the run from so long ago, I'll also mention that Husband got me a copy of "Once a Runner," a novel about running that is supposed to be very motivational, for Christmas. I read the first couple of chapters, but I need to finish another book I'm nearly done with before I get into it. I've seen this book on running must-read lists, so I'm sure I'll mention it again.
Alright, this run was a mess. I'll do my best to tell the story, but it would help you understand it if you could go sit in a freezer, or somewhere colder if possible (outside, maybe) while you read.
After having some pizza, a dew, and 3 glasses of water, I decided to go for a run. My stomach hurt, so at the last minute I threw back a peanut butter gingin. The last time I went to buy gingins, they didn't have the hard candy ones that I bought last time, but they did have chewy peanut buttered flavored ones. I wasn't thinking when I ate it.
It was cold that day (wind chill 15, as it turns out), so I pulled out my rocking long purple dance tights that I had from my ballet class, covered with long pants, long sleeve under armor, long sleeve tee, stocking cap, and fingerless mitts.
I set off. I ran down my alley, to the end of my street, around the corner, and something stabbed my toe. I glanced around but didn't see anything. I went a few more steps and felt it again. I looked at my shoe, the ground, and finally sat down on a small wall and took my shoe off. There was a little chunk of wood in there. I was greatly annoyed at this interruption to my run. I had run all of .08K (.05mi) and too much time had passed. I wasn't sure what to do, so I started walking toward the next corner. I took off from there 3 minutes after my original start time at .16K (.1mi).
I hadn't yet decided for sure what I was going to do to account for the lost time, so I did decide to take off like a bat out of hell. Based on my times, it shouldn't be a shock that I run obscenely slow. Little steps, sometimes almost being taken in place. Not today, I took off. Full on run. What was I thinking? I have no frakking idea.
As I turned toward the long, slightly hilly street to the school, I was wheezing. Like, if someone had seen me, they should have asked if I was okay. It wasn't panting, it was, there is no oxygen in my body. Oh, and that peanut butter gingin? That made for a lovely phlegmy cover to my mouth to just add to the misery. I was ready to quit. I specifically said, "Enough is enough." I had tried, but it was FREEZING and I was MISERABLE.
By now, I have completely repressed what technique I used to keep going, but I did. I definitely slowed down, and got my breathing in check somewhere past the school. Once I got my breathing in check, my sides started cramping.
When I turned around to head back past the school the other way, the wind was in my face. I had no breath, I was uber-snotty, the wind was making me tear, my stomach hurt, and I was phlegmy. And, according to my notes, I had no breath. (That's right, I listed that point twice.)
I continued toward downtown, but I was thinking our holiday parade was about that time, so I didn't repeat my run through downtown. I've just started staying a block further away from home in the middle of the run. Anyway, I saw a lot of runners. I saw people running to the ATM, people running to the library...I guess I am the only one who doesn't run in weather this cold!
I was finally better after I turned at the post office. My ears were cold, and my knees hurt/were stiff, but I was doing better. As I ran this loop of my Figure 8, I was thinking about how I had re-started my run at the block behind my house. I really wanted to make this a 5K distance. This was hands-down the worst run of all time, but even so, I was going to run 5K! If this was my last run EVER, I was going to be happy with conquering this nightmare of a run.
As I ran up the long main road towards home, I saw a dog across the street. I couldn't tell if it was chained, but it was acting a fool, like dogs do, kicking it's hind legs like a cat covering litter. There was an old man on the porch and he was kinda telling the dog to calm down, which made me think it was possibly loose, so I mustered the strength to yell over, "Is he tied up?" (Or something like that.) The old man didn't answer immediately, but then he said, "Yes, she is, but she wants to run with you." I don't know why, but it always seems like the rudest thing in the world to get an animal's sex wrong. I mean, it was dusk, and this is a wide road. It's absurd to think I could tell. Or maybe I just felt rude, because after he said that, I didn't reply a single word, just kept running. Ahh, I am the neighborliest of all the neighbors.
Anyway, when I got to my street, I ran past it, and up to the next block. I checked the time here --- as it turns out, I was almost at the 5K mark, and 40 minutes had passed. I ran past my alley and up to the street I stopped on, then around to my street, and up the alley. It was an odd path, but I wanted to make sure I had the full 5K in.
When I got in the house, my ears and face were ice pops. Husband asked me how my run was. I replied, "Horrible." The run was horrible, and the mitts probably need burned for all the snot wiped off on them, but I was quite happy to finish the 5K feeling that bad, and with an average time, too.
I have officially defined my temperature limits for running. It felt like 18 on Thanksgiving, when I had a great run. That is my lower limit. I believe 85 was where I preferred to stay under at the top. I can run on either side, but it SUCKS.
One other thing that has happened was that my town had a winter 5K the week after this run. I had toyed with entering - it's held at our big park, after dark. The park always puts up a lot of Christmas lights, and for the race there was supposed to be luminaries along the route, and Christmas music. Winners in each category got an ornament. As someone fully addicted to Christmas, I thought this should be my first race. Of course, I didn't run, I didn't even go. If I remember right, it was even warmer than average that evening. However, I did look at the results later, and there were quite a few runners, so one would expect some pretty good times. I wouldn't have finished last with my 40ish minute average...but at least one of the "walkers" would have beat me. It's official. When it gets warm enough (perhaps tomorrow!) to run again, I HAVE to look into doing speed work. My method of just sprinting almost killed me, so research will have to be done. I'm not all that interested in being in a race, but I want to SOMETIME, and I know I won't ever be the fastest, but I will not be beat by a walker!!
Weather: 28, Cloudy, 18 mph wind, 62% humidity, Feels like 15
Time: 4pm; 46:46 (includes 3 minute walk/shoe business)
Distance: 5.51K (3.43mi)
5K/10K: 42:07/1:29:02
Just run: 43:46
Distance: 5:35K (3.33mi)
Elevation: +86.1/-95.3/net -9.2 ft
5K/10K: 40:41/1:26:01
So one day, long, long ago, I went for a run. I made notes after the run which include "Saturday," and "not sore from yoga." So, I shall presume since my last post was Friday, December 3, and I announced I wasn't getting out of bed the next day from yoga, that this run day was Saturday, December 4. I may as well go ahead and note, this was the last time I ran or otherwise worked out, as I got incredibly busy with the holidays, and working, and interviewing and, yes, finally getting a full-time job, which I start next Monday. My new boss is a half-marathoner who once ran a race in a hurricane. The water was up to her mid-calf at the starting line. I shall feel like a wuss every time we discuss our runs.
I feel bad about not finishing out the 30 day fitness challenge. I wanted to work out many times, but never did it. However, despite living off cookies some days, I maintained my goal weight and am finishing off the year 15-20 lbs lighter than last year (it was about this time last year that I started working out regularly to get that 15-20 lbs off)!
Before I get into the run from so long ago, I'll also mention that Husband got me a copy of "Once a Runner," a novel about running that is supposed to be very motivational, for Christmas. I read the first couple of chapters, but I need to finish another book I'm nearly done with before I get into it. I've seen this book on running must-read lists, so I'm sure I'll mention it again.
Alright, this run was a mess. I'll do my best to tell the story, but it would help you understand it if you could go sit in a freezer, or somewhere colder if possible (outside, maybe) while you read.
After having some pizza, a dew, and 3 glasses of water, I decided to go for a run. My stomach hurt, so at the last minute I threw back a peanut butter gingin. The last time I went to buy gingins, they didn't have the hard candy ones that I bought last time, but they did have chewy peanut buttered flavored ones. I wasn't thinking when I ate it.
It was cold that day (wind chill 15, as it turns out), so I pulled out my rocking long purple dance tights that I had from my ballet class, covered with long pants, long sleeve under armor, long sleeve tee, stocking cap, and fingerless mitts.
I set off. I ran down my alley, to the end of my street, around the corner, and something stabbed my toe. I glanced around but didn't see anything. I went a few more steps and felt it again. I looked at my shoe, the ground, and finally sat down on a small wall and took my shoe off. There was a little chunk of wood in there. I was greatly annoyed at this interruption to my run. I had run all of .08K (.05mi) and too much time had passed. I wasn't sure what to do, so I started walking toward the next corner. I took off from there 3 minutes after my original start time at .16K (.1mi).
I hadn't yet decided for sure what I was going to do to account for the lost time, so I did decide to take off like a bat out of hell. Based on my times, it shouldn't be a shock that I run obscenely slow. Little steps, sometimes almost being taken in place. Not today, I took off. Full on run. What was I thinking? I have no frakking idea.
As I turned toward the long, slightly hilly street to the school, I was wheezing. Like, if someone had seen me, they should have asked if I was okay. It wasn't panting, it was, there is no oxygen in my body. Oh, and that peanut butter gingin? That made for a lovely phlegmy cover to my mouth to just add to the misery. I was ready to quit. I specifically said, "Enough is enough." I had tried, but it was FREEZING and I was MISERABLE.
By now, I have completely repressed what technique I used to keep going, but I did. I definitely slowed down, and got my breathing in check somewhere past the school. Once I got my breathing in check, my sides started cramping.
When I turned around to head back past the school the other way, the wind was in my face. I had no breath, I was uber-snotty, the wind was making me tear, my stomach hurt, and I was phlegmy. And, according to my notes, I had no breath. (That's right, I listed that point twice.)
I continued toward downtown, but I was thinking our holiday parade was about that time, so I didn't repeat my run through downtown. I've just started staying a block further away from home in the middle of the run. Anyway, I saw a lot of runners. I saw people running to the ATM, people running to the library...I guess I am the only one who doesn't run in weather this cold!
I was finally better after I turned at the post office. My ears were cold, and my knees hurt/were stiff, but I was doing better. As I ran this loop of my Figure 8, I was thinking about how I had re-started my run at the block behind my house. I really wanted to make this a 5K distance. This was hands-down the worst run of all time, but even so, I was going to run 5K! If this was my last run EVER, I was going to be happy with conquering this nightmare of a run.
As I ran up the long main road towards home, I saw a dog across the street. I couldn't tell if it was chained, but it was acting a fool, like dogs do, kicking it's hind legs like a cat covering litter. There was an old man on the porch and he was kinda telling the dog to calm down, which made me think it was possibly loose, so I mustered the strength to yell over, "Is he tied up?" (Or something like that.) The old man didn't answer immediately, but then he said, "Yes, she is, but she wants to run with you." I don't know why, but it always seems like the rudest thing in the world to get an animal's sex wrong. I mean, it was dusk, and this is a wide road. It's absurd to think I could tell. Or maybe I just felt rude, because after he said that, I didn't reply a single word, just kept running. Ahh, I am the neighborliest of all the neighbors.
Anyway, when I got to my street, I ran past it, and up to the next block. I checked the time here --- as it turns out, I was almost at the 5K mark, and 40 minutes had passed. I ran past my alley and up to the street I stopped on, then around to my street, and up the alley. It was an odd path, but I wanted to make sure I had the full 5K in.
When I got in the house, my ears and face were ice pops. Husband asked me how my run was. I replied, "Horrible." The run was horrible, and the mitts probably need burned for all the snot wiped off on them, but I was quite happy to finish the 5K feeling that bad, and with an average time, too.
I have officially defined my temperature limits for running. It felt like 18 on Thanksgiving, when I had a great run. That is my lower limit. I believe 85 was where I preferred to stay under at the top. I can run on either side, but it SUCKS.
One other thing that has happened was that my town had a winter 5K the week after this run. I had toyed with entering - it's held at our big park, after dark. The park always puts up a lot of Christmas lights, and for the race there was supposed to be luminaries along the route, and Christmas music. Winners in each category got an ornament. As someone fully addicted to Christmas, I thought this should be my first race. Of course, I didn't run, I didn't even go. If I remember right, it was even warmer than average that evening. However, I did look at the results later, and there were quite a few runners, so one would expect some pretty good times. I wouldn't have finished last with my 40ish minute average...but at least one of the "walkers" would have beat me. It's official. When it gets warm enough (perhaps tomorrow!) to run again, I HAVE to look into doing speed work. My method of just sprinting almost killed me, so research will have to be done. I'm not all that interested in being in a race, but I want to SOMETIME, and I know I won't ever be the fastest, but I will not be beat by a walker!!
Weather: 28, Cloudy, 18 mph wind, 62% humidity, Feels like 15
Time: 4pm; 46:46 (includes 3 minute walk/shoe business)
Distance: 5.51K (3.43mi)
5K/10K: 42:07/1:29:02
Just run: 43:46
Distance: 5:35K (3.33mi)
Elevation: +86.1/-95.3/net -9.2 ft
5K/10K: 40:41/1:26:01
Friday, December 3, 2010
Fitness Challenge Day 12
I did the Earth yoga tonight, the one that left me nearly immobile after Day 7. I've already announced I won't be getting out of bed tomorrow, as my abs hurt like I tore something (ok, not quite that bad) mid-way through the planks to up dogs.
All pets left me alone until the savasana, where I had the dog standing over me, sniffing my face, and then moving on to lick my hand. Sigh.
I'm going to do everything in my power to convince myself to run tomorrow.
All pets left me alone until the savasana, where I had the dog standing over me, sniffing my face, and then moving on to lick my hand. Sigh.
I'm going to do everything in my power to convince myself to run tomorrow.
Fitness Challenge Days 8-11
Day 8 (Monday): Rest Day. Ack. I was unbelievably sore from yoga yesterday, and still a little sore from sleeping all wrong Saturday night. Mondays when I'm working need to be a rest day anyway.
Day 9 (Tuesday): I thought about running in the snow! Yes, lovely flurries graced us on my first day off this week. I didn't make it out. I rode the exercise bike, with little to no enthusiasm, and went to bed.
Day 10 (Wednesday): Back to work, my second Monday aka my second Friday of the week. I managed, just barely, to ride the exercise bike before bed. It was quite literally taking all my strength to stay on it. Today was the first day of Advent Calendar Activities (have I mentioned I have the most astoundingly glorious advent calendar of all time?!), which meant I baked cookies tonight after work, after going to the market. Ooof. But, I did it. 20 minutes, only, but I was satisfied.
Day 11 (Thursday): Second day off, and apparently the temp got up to 52 degrees today. Did I run? No. I took a 3 hour nap, though, so that's something. Anyhoo, I didn't want to ride the bike again, because I am getting totally burnt out on it, so I did the leg strengthening yoga that I have recorded. I continue to love doing yoga with my pets around. There's no way to maintain a calm demeanor when the dog is behind you during a forward fold, looking you right in the eyes while you're upside down, with a very clear look on his face of "What in the name of holy dog biscuits are you doing?"
I failed to mention on Day 7, when I came up from a child's pose, my big fat cat had apparently walked up as I was rolling up and when I opened my eyes/looked up, he was standing right where I had just been laying and it startled me so bad I shook. I'm sure that helped my whole back situation immensely.
That brings us to today, my third Monday aka actual Friday of the week, and I can hardly wait to see what I will get accomplished over my 3 day weekend. Since my goal is to workout 6 days a week, I'm bound to be doing something for the next 3 days (counting tonight). The temp dropped again, but I haven't run in over a week, so maybe I'll get up the gusto to get outside at some point.
I do have an enormous amount of Christmas knitting to get done, and while I have seen pictures of people knitting in marathons, I am using double pointed needles, and not interested in having one surgically removed when I trip over the bad sidewalks or a loose dog this weekend.
Day 9 (Tuesday): I thought about running in the snow! Yes, lovely flurries graced us on my first day off this week. I didn't make it out. I rode the exercise bike, with little to no enthusiasm, and went to bed.
Day 10 (Wednesday): Back to work, my second Monday aka my second Friday of the week. I managed, just barely, to ride the exercise bike before bed. It was quite literally taking all my strength to stay on it. Today was the first day of Advent Calendar Activities (have I mentioned I have the most astoundingly glorious advent calendar of all time?!), which meant I baked cookies tonight after work, after going to the market. Ooof. But, I did it. 20 minutes, only, but I was satisfied.
Day 11 (Thursday): Second day off, and apparently the temp got up to 52 degrees today. Did I run? No. I took a 3 hour nap, though, so that's something. Anyhoo, I didn't want to ride the bike again, because I am getting totally burnt out on it, so I did the leg strengthening yoga that I have recorded. I continue to love doing yoga with my pets around. There's no way to maintain a calm demeanor when the dog is behind you during a forward fold, looking you right in the eyes while you're upside down, with a very clear look on his face of "What in the name of holy dog biscuits are you doing?"
I failed to mention on Day 7, when I came up from a child's pose, my big fat cat had apparently walked up as I was rolling up and when I opened my eyes/looked up, he was standing right where I had just been laying and it startled me so bad I shook. I'm sure that helped my whole back situation immensely.
That brings us to today, my third Monday aka actual Friday of the week, and I can hardly wait to see what I will get accomplished over my 3 day weekend. Since my goal is to workout 6 days a week, I'm bound to be doing something for the next 3 days (counting tonight). The temp dropped again, but I haven't run in over a week, so maybe I'll get up the gusto to get outside at some point.
I do have an enormous amount of Christmas knitting to get done, and while I have seen pictures of people knitting in marathons, I am using double pointed needles, and not interested in having one surgically removed when I trip over the bad sidewalks or a loose dog this weekend.
Sunday, November 28, 2010
Fitness Challenge Days 6-7
Yesterday, I didn't work out. I didn't have any particular reason to...I didn't actively put it off, or decide not to...I just...didn't.
I woke up this morning nearly paralyzed. I actually thought I had to have had a stroke in my sleep. Once some movement was regained, I thought perhaps I just had meningitis.
Most of the pain stems from my right shoulder, where I surely separated it, or cracked something, several years ago. It was just nearly as excruciating as the day I did it. My whole back burned, and I roped Husband into massaging it as soon as he woke up, but nothing was working. I took a couple of pain pills and desperately wanted to do some yoga, but I didn't think I could stand it.
I finally queued up a Namaste Yoga, after the 2nd painkiller started to kick in, and did the lovely Earth series, which promotes spine flexibility (some down dogs, up dogs, and lotsa cat rolling and child poses...mmmm...).
I could move much better upon completion, but it remains to be seen if that's the second painkiller, or the yoga. However, I'm sure the yoga will help me get through work tomorrow in case the effects of last night haven't fully worn off yet.
I woke up this morning nearly paralyzed. I actually thought I had to have had a stroke in my sleep. Once some movement was regained, I thought perhaps I just had meningitis.
Most of the pain stems from my right shoulder, where I surely separated it, or cracked something, several years ago. It was just nearly as excruciating as the day I did it. My whole back burned, and I roped Husband into massaging it as soon as he woke up, but nothing was working. I took a couple of pain pills and desperately wanted to do some yoga, but I didn't think I could stand it.
I finally queued up a Namaste Yoga, after the 2nd painkiller started to kick in, and did the lovely Earth series, which promotes spine flexibility (some down dogs, up dogs, and lotsa cat rolling and child poses...mmmm...).
I could move much better upon completion, but it remains to be seen if that's the second painkiller, or the yoga. However, I'm sure the yoga will help me get through work tomorrow in case the effects of last night haven't fully worn off yet.
Saturday, November 27, 2010
Fitness Challenge Day 5
Friday, November 26.
After running a glorious 4.5 miles last night, Friday probably should have just been a straight recovery day. But all day, in spite of the slightly sore, definitely tired legs and knees, and headache of course, I kept thinking about getting a workout in. I finally decided to do yoga right before I went to bed. I repeated the leg strengthening workout and could see a definite improvement over two days ago.
I'm also adding a goal of running 5 miles to my goal list. I already have the next big mark, a 10K (6.2 mi) on the list. I'm very curious to see if I can repeat a 4+ mile run on my next outing.
After running a glorious 4.5 miles last night, Friday probably should have just been a straight recovery day. But all day, in spite of the slightly sore, definitely tired legs and knees, and headache of course, I kept thinking about getting a workout in. I finally decided to do yoga right before I went to bed. I repeated the leg strengthening workout and could see a definite improvement over two days ago.
I'm also adding a goal of running 5 miles to my goal list. I already have the next big mark, a 10K (6.2 mi) on the list. I'm very curious to see if I can repeat a 4+ mile run on my next outing.
Happy Thanksgiving!
Run Day: Thursday, November 25.
Today started out with massive amounts of food being prepared, while I sat in front of the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade. I love the parade every year. We had a huge feast around noon, and I think I ate more than I have ever eaten in a single setting. I've been working out for a year, just so I could do this, and I enjoyed it immensely.
Since I generally try to track what I eat pre-run, I will do my best to give a rundown of the food I ate. There's no point in typing out the amount of each - just assume it was a cubic buttload. Here goes: Tofurky with stuffing and gravy, stuffing (not out of the tofurky), mashed potatoes and gravy, sweet potatoes and applesauce, corn, rolls, deviled eggs, homemade noodles, black olives, Dew, and a lot of water. My parents like that cranberry stuff in the shape of a can, which has always horrified me, but I've realized I really, really like cranberries in recent years, so I also had one small bite of the can-berry sauce. Nasty. (You'll note an embarrassing lack of pumpkin pie on the list - I just didn't have room at this point.)
After my parents left, I was still pretty stuffed and wasn't ready to workout. Plus it was frakking freezing outside. I figured yoga may be my best bet for today - stretch out that belly a bit. From the warmth of the inside of my house. At any rate, I sat down at the computer and read a blog post I had saved from Runner's World from a few days ago, on puke. I fear puking from a run - frankly, I don't ever want to push myself so hard that I puke. That's so not what this is about for me. However, I understand that it could happen just because I accidentally drank too much water or something, so the topic needs to be looked into if I plan to prevent it. Given the massive amount of food I ingested today, I definitely thought this could be my day. Turns out the post was kinda just a joke; it didn't have any real information in it, other than that you will face puke in your running career, whether it's yours or not. However, the comments, while entertaining, also explained the general understanding of why people puke post-workout. Apparently, when you are digesting food, blood pools around your stomach and small intestine. When you workout, the blood has to flow to the muscles to support their activity. This causes havoc on your digestive process, basically preventing digestion and causing an emergency evacuation in the other direction. So...this caused me to start googling to determine how long the digestive process takes. Of course, that is based on what you eat, etc, etc, no clear answers. All I knew was that I felt like a bloated horse, and feared if I tried to run, I would tip over on my big fattened belly.
However, I was quickly losing daylight. If I was going to go, I had about half an hour until dark. I didn't figure I'd be able to run much at all before an emergency evacuation sent me home. It was really cold, so I wore the long pants, long sleeved under armor, long sleeved tee, stocking cap, and wrist warmers. I debated sunglasses, but thought the sun had set far enough that it wouldn't be an issue. I also debated a scarf, but didn't think people usually ran with scarves, so dropped that idea quickly.
I set out into the bitter cold, armed with my poem and phone. This is the first time that I've been able to see my breath while running. As if hearing my panting wasn't annoying enough.. My fingers were so cold, that I wiggled my hands, with poem and phone down into my wrist warmers. And my face was freezing - what do people use?! A face mask? Oh, as if I didn't already get enough strange looks running this evening. There wasn't much traffic tonight, but obviously a lot of the cars I did see were pulling up for dinner, or just getting home from lunch. I also enjoyed the random kids I saw, solo kids just kinda standing in a yard with a stick. That's a sure sign of a siblingless kid at the grandparents house.
I knew we had ice on our back steps, so I was on the lookout for ice patches while running, and there were several. I also had a black cat cross my path within a couple of blocks of the house. This run seemed ridiculous at best. But, since I didn't tip over immediately, or hurl, I figured I could go at least 20 minutes (my fitness group goal)...Or, since I had set out on my 5K route, maybe I would just finish one loop, and go home at the mid-point. But, as I came to the mid-point, I was feeling pretty good, and hadn't even used my poem or any other type of trick to keep going.
However, I did decide to do as I did on my last run, and go straight to the main road. Once I got there, I decided to go ahead and cross and run downtown, further distancing my route from the house. I've often thought I would like to make my route go this way, but I have often waited several minutes to cross the main street here, so I made my route cross at the stop sign. Since there was nearly no traffic tonight, I went for it. Once across, I was running past the library, which is where I ran on my very, very first run (and I don't believe I have run past since).
I turned toward the post office and was feeling quite good. It was getting darker faster than I expected, though. As I headed down the long side street, I was thinking about the hill at the end and how there's no sidewalk there, and it was dark. When I took Mom on the mini blog tour, she pointed out the obvious fact that there is sidewalk on the other side of the street there. However, during the day, there is a lot of traffic through here, and it would result in me crossing the road at two awkward 3-way intersections. Generally, it just seems safer to tackle the hill in the street.
But since no one was out tonight, I crossed over to the sidewalk. I felt stupid good, even running up the hill. I decided to go all the way to the top of the hill (another block), then cross over, and run the block back to the main road. So I did that and as I was running up the main road, in the full-on dark, paying extra attention when crossing the streets, I knew I couldn't just run home. I loved that I was out doing this, and that I was burning off that lunch. I loved the clear example of calories turning to energy. I loved that I was conquering the initial fear of running in the dark and the frigid cold. I really loved that my stomach felt fine. I had worked through several cramps (throughout the run), but they were all very light compared to the ones I often get. I was pretty warm, too - my hands were hot all closed up inside my mitts, but I refused to take them out. It was mostly just my face that I worried about getting wind burnt out there.
Anyway, I was trying to think of where I could continue my run (preferably without getting TOO close to the house), on sidewalks. I crossed over on a street that is named the same as one of my favorite Christmas movie towns, headed for the dreaded hills. I crossed the 5K point right after turning onto this street, but I had no idea, so I didn't check the time.
Lo and behold, a second black cat crossed my path. This led me to seriously reconsider going after the hills, but on I went. There was ice on the hills, which I managed to avoid. I had to go uphill no matter what at this point, but I think the hills that go back towards the main street aren't so steep. They also don't have sidewalks, but there's never traffic, and they're well lit and wide. In the end, I decided to stay on the main hill and trudge up it.
I made it without batting an eye.
I can't believe how well I handled the hills tonight. The one that I turn onto at the end of the main road is a 30 foot elevation change over .15 mi, and this one is 37 feet over the same distance.
So now I am on the street at the end of the main road (the opposite end from where I come onto this street during the normal 5K route). I covered the couple of blocks back to where I had ran up the hill earlier and started retracing my steps. I was pretty sure I had topped my next goal of 4 miles, or would before I was done, but I wasn't ready to stop. I was getting close to running a full hour, and was sure I could achieve that, if I could just keep finding sidewalks. About 2 blocks after I turned back onto the main street, I crossed the 6K mark.
I didn't want to just circle around the same route, so I stayed on the main street all the way to my street. There was a whole herd of people out in the front yard and on the sidewalk near my street. I wasn't looking forward to running past them, and it was really dark there, so I just kinda held my breath and went for it. A few of them stepped out of my way as I got close, but one girl didn't see me until I was right there and she was completely confounded as to why everyone was stepping off the sidewalk. (Because what maniac would be out running!?)
Situation averted, I was on my street debating what to do next. After having very little traffic or commotion tonight, I was on my street where I rarely ever have commotion. My neighbors were leaving in multiple cars though, and I did get stalled for a few seconds while I made sure they saw me in the dark.
I headed to the end of my street and was once again going to be put into hills. I decided to turn onto the same street that the bigger hills are on, and head back towards them. I ran past the creepy angel statue, past some people who had their smoker really smokin', and up the hill to the Christmas Movie Town Street. When I got there, there was traffic approaching from both directions. I was trying to decide if I wanted to cross (which would have me back on the bigger hills), or turn back. I was trying to time this out to where I would get home in one hour, so I ran up to the intersection, where I think everyone was waiting for me, and turned around. "Sorry." I crossed the 7K mark a block later.
I headed back home, making it in one hour and one minute. I may have been able to run farther, but I thought enough was most certainly enough. I never did use my poem, or other tricks. However, I did have to keep a more active eye on traffic, ice patches, black cats, strange kids standing around, and just had to keep occupied thinking about where I was going to run next. I wish I didn't get sooo bored while running just a regular route!
When I got home, I recovered quickly, but my face, ears (even under a hat), and legs (I wore long yoga pants - they aren't thick or warm) were frozen solid...Which leads us to a new feature here on the blog: The Wind Chill Factor.
Weather: 29, Dusk/Dark, 13 mph, 50% Humidity, Feels Like 18 (WC)
Time: 4:30 pm; Run 1:01 - A one hour run comes on Day 40 of my 49 day 5K to 10K plan, although I hoped to be running about 5.5 mi in that time.
Distance: 7.24K (4.5 mi) - I blew that 4 mile goal out of the water, on the first attempt at it! And I started out hoping to run 20 minutes!
Elevation: +193.1/-194.6/net -1.5 ft
5K/10K: 40:54/1:26:28 - Just another average time. I'm ok with it tonight, though, because I was, after all, trying not to puke out my lunch.
And when I got home...I had a piece of pumpkin pie that was about a third of the pie, topped with nearly half a container of cool whip.
I love Thanksgiving, but I don't think I can eat this much every day to train.
Today started out with massive amounts of food being prepared, while I sat in front of the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade. I love the parade every year. We had a huge feast around noon, and I think I ate more than I have ever eaten in a single setting. I've been working out for a year, just so I could do this, and I enjoyed it immensely.
Since I generally try to track what I eat pre-run, I will do my best to give a rundown of the food I ate. There's no point in typing out the amount of each - just assume it was a cubic buttload. Here goes: Tofurky with stuffing and gravy, stuffing (not out of the tofurky), mashed potatoes and gravy, sweet potatoes and applesauce, corn, rolls, deviled eggs, homemade noodles, black olives, Dew, and a lot of water. My parents like that cranberry stuff in the shape of a can, which has always horrified me, but I've realized I really, really like cranberries in recent years, so I also had one small bite of the can-berry sauce. Nasty. (You'll note an embarrassing lack of pumpkin pie on the list - I just didn't have room at this point.)
After my parents left, I was still pretty stuffed and wasn't ready to workout. Plus it was frakking freezing outside. I figured yoga may be my best bet for today - stretch out that belly a bit. From the warmth of the inside of my house. At any rate, I sat down at the computer and read a blog post I had saved from Runner's World from a few days ago, on puke. I fear puking from a run - frankly, I don't ever want to push myself so hard that I puke. That's so not what this is about for me. However, I understand that it could happen just because I accidentally drank too much water or something, so the topic needs to be looked into if I plan to prevent it. Given the massive amount of food I ingested today, I definitely thought this could be my day. Turns out the post was kinda just a joke; it didn't have any real information in it, other than that you will face puke in your running career, whether it's yours or not. However, the comments, while entertaining, also explained the general understanding of why people puke post-workout. Apparently, when you are digesting food, blood pools around your stomach and small intestine. When you workout, the blood has to flow to the muscles to support their activity. This causes havoc on your digestive process, basically preventing digestion and causing an emergency evacuation in the other direction. So...this caused me to start googling to determine how long the digestive process takes. Of course, that is based on what you eat, etc, etc, no clear answers. All I knew was that I felt like a bloated horse, and feared if I tried to run, I would tip over on my big fattened belly.
However, I was quickly losing daylight. If I was going to go, I had about half an hour until dark. I didn't figure I'd be able to run much at all before an emergency evacuation sent me home. It was really cold, so I wore the long pants, long sleeved under armor, long sleeved tee, stocking cap, and wrist warmers. I debated sunglasses, but thought the sun had set far enough that it wouldn't be an issue. I also debated a scarf, but didn't think people usually ran with scarves, so dropped that idea quickly.
I set out into the bitter cold, armed with my poem and phone. This is the first time that I've been able to see my breath while running. As if hearing my panting wasn't annoying enough.. My fingers were so cold, that I wiggled my hands, with poem and phone down into my wrist warmers. And my face was freezing - what do people use?! A face mask? Oh, as if I didn't already get enough strange looks running this evening. There wasn't much traffic tonight, but obviously a lot of the cars I did see were pulling up for dinner, or just getting home from lunch. I also enjoyed the random kids I saw, solo kids just kinda standing in a yard with a stick. That's a sure sign of a siblingless kid at the grandparents house.
I knew we had ice on our back steps, so I was on the lookout for ice patches while running, and there were several. I also had a black cat cross my path within a couple of blocks of the house. This run seemed ridiculous at best. But, since I didn't tip over immediately, or hurl, I figured I could go at least 20 minutes (my fitness group goal)...Or, since I had set out on my 5K route, maybe I would just finish one loop, and go home at the mid-point. But, as I came to the mid-point, I was feeling pretty good, and hadn't even used my poem or any other type of trick to keep going.
However, I did decide to do as I did on my last run, and go straight to the main road. Once I got there, I decided to go ahead and cross and run downtown, further distancing my route from the house. I've often thought I would like to make my route go this way, but I have often waited several minutes to cross the main street here, so I made my route cross at the stop sign. Since there was nearly no traffic tonight, I went for it. Once across, I was running past the library, which is where I ran on my very, very first run (and I don't believe I have run past since).
I turned toward the post office and was feeling quite good. It was getting darker faster than I expected, though. As I headed down the long side street, I was thinking about the hill at the end and how there's no sidewalk there, and it was dark. When I took Mom on the mini blog tour, she pointed out the obvious fact that there is sidewalk on the other side of the street there. However, during the day, there is a lot of traffic through here, and it would result in me crossing the road at two awkward 3-way intersections. Generally, it just seems safer to tackle the hill in the street.
But since no one was out tonight, I crossed over to the sidewalk. I felt stupid good, even running up the hill. I decided to go all the way to the top of the hill (another block), then cross over, and run the block back to the main road. So I did that and as I was running up the main road, in the full-on dark, paying extra attention when crossing the streets, I knew I couldn't just run home. I loved that I was out doing this, and that I was burning off that lunch. I loved the clear example of calories turning to energy. I loved that I was conquering the initial fear of running in the dark and the frigid cold. I really loved that my stomach felt fine. I had worked through several cramps (throughout the run), but they were all very light compared to the ones I often get. I was pretty warm, too - my hands were hot all closed up inside my mitts, but I refused to take them out. It was mostly just my face that I worried about getting wind burnt out there.
Anyway, I was trying to think of where I could continue my run (preferably without getting TOO close to the house), on sidewalks. I crossed over on a street that is named the same as one of my favorite Christmas movie towns, headed for the dreaded hills. I crossed the 5K point right after turning onto this street, but I had no idea, so I didn't check the time.
Lo and behold, a second black cat crossed my path. This led me to seriously reconsider going after the hills, but on I went. There was ice on the hills, which I managed to avoid. I had to go uphill no matter what at this point, but I think the hills that go back towards the main street aren't so steep. They also don't have sidewalks, but there's never traffic, and they're well lit and wide. In the end, I decided to stay on the main hill and trudge up it.
I made it without batting an eye.
I can't believe how well I handled the hills tonight. The one that I turn onto at the end of the main road is a 30 foot elevation change over .15 mi, and this one is 37 feet over the same distance.
So now I am on the street at the end of the main road (the opposite end from where I come onto this street during the normal 5K route). I covered the couple of blocks back to where I had ran up the hill earlier and started retracing my steps. I was pretty sure I had topped my next goal of 4 miles, or would before I was done, but I wasn't ready to stop. I was getting close to running a full hour, and was sure I could achieve that, if I could just keep finding sidewalks. About 2 blocks after I turned back onto the main street, I crossed the 6K mark.
I didn't want to just circle around the same route, so I stayed on the main street all the way to my street. There was a whole herd of people out in the front yard and on the sidewalk near my street. I wasn't looking forward to running past them, and it was really dark there, so I just kinda held my breath and went for it. A few of them stepped out of my way as I got close, but one girl didn't see me until I was right there and she was completely confounded as to why everyone was stepping off the sidewalk. (Because what maniac would be out running!?)
Situation averted, I was on my street debating what to do next. After having very little traffic or commotion tonight, I was on my street where I rarely ever have commotion. My neighbors were leaving in multiple cars though, and I did get stalled for a few seconds while I made sure they saw me in the dark.
I headed to the end of my street and was once again going to be put into hills. I decided to turn onto the same street that the bigger hills are on, and head back towards them. I ran past the creepy angel statue, past some people who had their smoker really smokin', and up the hill to the Christmas Movie Town Street. When I got there, there was traffic approaching from both directions. I was trying to decide if I wanted to cross (which would have me back on the bigger hills), or turn back. I was trying to time this out to where I would get home in one hour, so I ran up to the intersection, where I think everyone was waiting for me, and turned around. "Sorry." I crossed the 7K mark a block later.
I headed back home, making it in one hour and one minute. I may have been able to run farther, but I thought enough was most certainly enough. I never did use my poem, or other tricks. However, I did have to keep a more active eye on traffic, ice patches, black cats, strange kids standing around, and just had to keep occupied thinking about where I was going to run next. I wish I didn't get sooo bored while running just a regular route!
When I got home, I recovered quickly, but my face, ears (even under a hat), and legs (I wore long yoga pants - they aren't thick or warm) were frozen solid...Which leads us to a new feature here on the blog: The Wind Chill Factor.
Weather: 29, Dusk/Dark, 13 mph, 50% Humidity, Feels Like 18 (WC)
Time: 4:30 pm; Run 1:01 - A one hour run comes on Day 40 of my 49 day 5K to 10K plan, although I hoped to be running about 5.5 mi in that time.
Distance: 7.24K (4.5 mi) - I blew that 4 mile goal out of the water, on the first attempt at it! And I started out hoping to run 20 minutes!
Elevation: +193.1/-194.6/net -1.5 ft
5K/10K: 40:54/1:26:28 - Just another average time. I'm ok with it tonight, though, because I was, after all, trying not to puke out my lunch.
And when I got home...I had a piece of pumpkin pie that was about a third of the pie, topped with nearly half a container of cool whip.
I love Thanksgiving, but I don't think I can eat this much every day to train.
Friday, November 26, 2010
Fitness Challenge
Now for something completely different...Monday the 22nd, marked the beginning of a 30 day fitness challenge that I joined online.
The objective is, essentially, to meet your fitness goals for the next 30 days. The group leader wants to work out 6 days a week for 2 weeks, and 7 days a week for the last 2 weeks. I no longer have fitness goals, per se, but I think I should be working out at least 6 days a week.
Given the time of year we are entering into, not only is it hard to stick to a reasonable diet, but it is flat-out impossible to find time to workout. So, this group challenge is a pretty cool way to keep each other motivated and I'm excited about it.
Monday I rode the closet, I mean exercise bike, for 20 minutes. I would like to be getting 30 minutes a day, I suppose, but my yogas on the dvr are only 20 minutes, also, so I'll just be happy with 20 minutes a day for now. Plus, I must have the settings on the bike messed up, because 10 minutes is the max I can stand to ride that thing. But I got up bright and early before work on Monday and rode the bike for 20 minutes, which came out to 6+ miles per the little readout.
Tuesday, I got up bright and early before work and did yoga. I haven't done yoga in sooo long, and it shows. I had never done this particular workout before, but it is for leg strengthening, so I figured it would help with my running.
Wednesday, I was off work, and my parents were visiting for Thanksgiving. I gave Mom a brief blog tour (via automobile), showing her the 5K route I've been running. In the evening, I managed to eke out another 20 minutes on the exercise bike.
Thursday, well. We have Thanksgiving at lunch, and my parents would be leaving afterwards, so I was fretfully waiting to workout until the evening. I feared what I would be able to do with a full belly, but if I wasn't going to work out on a holiday like Thanksgiving, what was the point of joining a challenge like this at this time of year!?
I'll save the gory, I mean, glory details for the next post.
The objective is, essentially, to meet your fitness goals for the next 30 days. The group leader wants to work out 6 days a week for 2 weeks, and 7 days a week for the last 2 weeks. I no longer have fitness goals, per se, but I think I should be working out at least 6 days a week.
Given the time of year we are entering into, not only is it hard to stick to a reasonable diet, but it is flat-out impossible to find time to workout. So, this group challenge is a pretty cool way to keep each other motivated and I'm excited about it.
Monday I rode the closet, I mean exercise bike, for 20 minutes. I would like to be getting 30 minutes a day, I suppose, but my yogas on the dvr are only 20 minutes, also, so I'll just be happy with 20 minutes a day for now. Plus, I must have the settings on the bike messed up, because 10 minutes is the max I can stand to ride that thing. But I got up bright and early before work on Monday and rode the bike for 20 minutes, which came out to 6+ miles per the little readout.
Tuesday, I got up bright and early before work and did yoga. I haven't done yoga in sooo long, and it shows. I had never done this particular workout before, but it is for leg strengthening, so I figured it would help with my running.
Wednesday, I was off work, and my parents were visiting for Thanksgiving. I gave Mom a brief blog tour (via automobile), showing her the 5K route I've been running. In the evening, I managed to eke out another 20 minutes on the exercise bike.
Thursday, well. We have Thanksgiving at lunch, and my parents would be leaving afterwards, so I was fretfully waiting to workout until the evening. I feared what I would be able to do with a full belly, but if I wasn't going to work out on a holiday like Thanksgiving, what was the point of joining a challenge like this at this time of year!?
I'll save the gory, I mean, glory details for the next post.
Day 70 +1
Run Day: Friday, November 19.
Sigh, really? Another week and a half went by? Well, I did plan to rest once I finished the 5K. Plus, I had a trip to Kansas City over the weekend, and I started work Monday. With it being Orientation week, I actually got four days of work in. I have desperately wanted to run, but it's dark morning and night. And it's cold. I even ran, in heels, up 5 flights of stairs in the parking garage yesterday at lunch, just to get the blood pumping.
I've also been contemplating my own made up 5K to 10K plan. After completing a 5K, which I always knew would take around 40 minutes, I planned two days off, followed by runs of 32, 35, 35, 37, and 40 minutes, then a 4 mile run, followed by a 42 minute run. I never did think this made a lot of sense, but it was beginning to look as if it would never matter anyway. Since I just completed a 42 minute run, I was essentially already on Day 17 of my plan (skipping the 4 mile run). Hmm. I set out today with the hope of repeating a 5K and readdressing the 10K plan afterwards. All I know is that I am adding a goal: Run 4 miles. It's the next big milestone for me, one way or another.
I was debating what to wear today. It bothers me that my summer running clothes say to wear only in very hot weather. I mean, if I wear one now, and cover with a sweatshirt, it's still going to wick. But what else is going to happen? A fire? A flood? Will I get cancer? Will it turn to ice? Will I turn to ice? Bah, I went with capri pants, winter under armor long sleeved shirt, and long sleeved t-shirt, plus a stocking cap and chapstick.
Pre-run food today: granola bar, Dew, water, cheese and whole wheat crackers. Nom Nom.
I had a massive calf cramp last night. The kind where the screaming wakes you up, rather than the cramp itself. My leg was still very sore today, but I thought I would be ok to run. I stretched the Achilles a bit longer, and hoped for the best. When I set out (poem in hand, mp3 at home), it was actually my ankles that hurt. Sigh. My shins were also hurting today. Whatever.
I started off following the same route as last time, taking the hills first. However, I felt like I needed to avoid getting too close to the house, so I slightly tweaked the twist of my Figure-8. I ran straight to the main road, instead of taking an early turn a block closer to home.
This seemed effective, along with heavy use of trying to memorize the poem. Aside from getting quite hot, there really wasn't much to report. At the corner where the 5K mark is, I noted that I had been running 39 minutes (a minute faster than last time). I made it home in what seemed like relative ease. I can't believe I've officially cleared the 5K hurdle.
Once home, my ankles continued to hurt, as did the bottoms of my feet, of course. I also need to look into headaches post-workout. I get them sometimes, but they have been more regular lately, and they're horrendous. I know I've come across articles on the subject, but now I really need to look into it to see what I can do about it. I'm taking way too many tylenol again for my liking.
This run felt especially amazing after sitting in an office all week (well, 4 days). I'm really excited about having running help me through my dreaded work life.
Weather: 56, Sunny, 15mph Wind, 51% Humidity
Time: 1pm; 41:35 - 10 seconds faster than last time.
Distance: 5.2K (3.23mi) - Essentially the same distance as last time.
Elevation: +89.3/-89.3/net 0 ft
5K/10K: 39:52/1:24:16 - While faster than last time, I'd really like to be moving along a bit faster now that I know I can do the distance. This was my 14th fastest overall, 32nd fastest just running time. I wouldn't have bothered counting if I weren't still so excited about running a 5K.
Sigh, really? Another week and a half went by? Well, I did plan to rest once I finished the 5K. Plus, I had a trip to Kansas City over the weekend, and I started work Monday. With it being Orientation week, I actually got four days of work in. I have desperately wanted to run, but it's dark morning and night. And it's cold. I even ran, in heels, up 5 flights of stairs in the parking garage yesterday at lunch, just to get the blood pumping.
I've also been contemplating my own made up 5K to 10K plan. After completing a 5K, which I always knew would take around 40 minutes, I planned two days off, followed by runs of 32, 35, 35, 37, and 40 minutes, then a 4 mile run, followed by a 42 minute run. I never did think this made a lot of sense, but it was beginning to look as if it would never matter anyway. Since I just completed a 42 minute run, I was essentially already on Day 17 of my plan (skipping the 4 mile run). Hmm. I set out today with the hope of repeating a 5K and readdressing the 10K plan afterwards. All I know is that I am adding a goal: Run 4 miles. It's the next big milestone for me, one way or another.
I was debating what to wear today. It bothers me that my summer running clothes say to wear only in very hot weather. I mean, if I wear one now, and cover with a sweatshirt, it's still going to wick. But what else is going to happen? A fire? A flood? Will I get cancer? Will it turn to ice? Will I turn to ice? Bah, I went with capri pants, winter under armor long sleeved shirt, and long sleeved t-shirt, plus a stocking cap and chapstick.
Pre-run food today: granola bar, Dew, water, cheese and whole wheat crackers. Nom Nom.
I had a massive calf cramp last night. The kind where the screaming wakes you up, rather than the cramp itself. My leg was still very sore today, but I thought I would be ok to run. I stretched the Achilles a bit longer, and hoped for the best. When I set out (poem in hand, mp3 at home), it was actually my ankles that hurt. Sigh. My shins were also hurting today. Whatever.
I started off following the same route as last time, taking the hills first. However, I felt like I needed to avoid getting too close to the house, so I slightly tweaked the twist of my Figure-8. I ran straight to the main road, instead of taking an early turn a block closer to home.
This seemed effective, along with heavy use of trying to memorize the poem. Aside from getting quite hot, there really wasn't much to report. At the corner where the 5K mark is, I noted that I had been running 39 minutes (a minute faster than last time). I made it home in what seemed like relative ease. I can't believe I've officially cleared the 5K hurdle.
Once home, my ankles continued to hurt, as did the bottoms of my feet, of course. I also need to look into headaches post-workout. I get them sometimes, but they have been more regular lately, and they're horrendous. I know I've come across articles on the subject, but now I really need to look into it to see what I can do about it. I'm taking way too many tylenol again for my liking.
This run felt especially amazing after sitting in an office all week (well, 4 days). I'm really excited about having running help me through my dreaded work life.
Weather: 56, Sunny, 15mph Wind, 51% Humidity
Time: 1pm; 41:35 - 10 seconds faster than last time.
Distance: 5.2K (3.23mi) - Essentially the same distance as last time.
Elevation: +89.3/-89.3/net 0 ft
5K/10K: 39:52/1:24:16 - While faster than last time, I'd really like to be moving along a bit faster now that I know I can do the distance. This was my 14th fastest overall, 32nd fastest just running time. I wouldn't have bothered counting if I weren't still so excited about running a 5K.
...to 5K!!!!!!
Run Day: Wednesday, November 10.
I am irritated to no end that I waited this long to blog this. I do, however, remember the details a bit more clearly than Monday's run.
Today started off like so many other days this year. A lot of hassle to go in for an interview for a job that turns out I would never want. This was approximately my 15th interview of the year. This one was my breaking point. I've stayed remarkably positive through this process, whether it's because I much prefer being poor to working, or maybe it is the endorphins from running, but this one just made me postal. Well, borderline postal. I came home and checked my email. I have actually been hired for part time temporary work, but the process has been long and arduous and it's been about a month, but I haven't actually started working yet. My email held the news that the office I had been placed in was only going to need me 2-3 days a week, instead of 5. Oh, there's postal.
I was already planning on running, but time was getting short before I had to go back and pick up Husband, and there was a threat of storms in the area. Not a "watch," just a threat, based mostly on the thick rolling clouds that were blowing through. However, when I read that email, I knew running was of the essence. As I was stretching, I was in full-on meltdown mode. Today was going to be a definite test to see if running was strong enough to bust stress. I was rocking a pair of shorts that actually had a pocket for my id, and a margarita t-shirt, as I would have preferred a margarita if I didn't have to pick up Husband.
Today I had ingested a Dew, homemade pumpkin bread, a couple of homemade whole grain crackers, and about 3 glasses of water.
I had written down the first stanza of "If" and left my mp3 behind. Partly because I knew the charge was low, but mostly because I thought this poem memorizing this was going to work, but not with music. So I set off with phone in one hand, and poem in the other - a lighter load than normal.
I was tired after 3 blocks.
My feet were still sore from Monday's run.
I was dizzy. (Argh!?)
But most of all, I was pissed. I went obsessively back through the morning's interview, which I always do, and find it leaves me with much less of a feeling of wasting time when I do it while running. I stomped through my rage about getting my hours cut before I even start a job. I stomped and stomped and stomped. By the time I got through the hills and to the end of the bottom of the Figure-8, about 1 mile, I was over it. Over it all.
I was much more concerned about the clouds. I had taken my sunglasses off, partly because it was so dark now, and partly to just keep a better eye on the clouds blowing in. (It was super windy, but it didn't seem to be hitting me in the face like normal.) I didn't like having my sunglasses off, because everyone and their mother was outside. I was spending a lot of precious energy saying hello, excuse me, and nodding kindly to people, even though I have sworn many times to not do that while I'm trying to run. I started worrying that I would have to stop when I got close to the house today, just for my own safety. I also wished I had my mp3, as I should be able to pick up the local radio stations on it and check the weather.
As I ran back towards the center of the Figure-8, I unfolded the poem. I had been worried I wouldn't adequately be able to run and read what was in my hand, but I managed. It was an okay distraction.
Nearing the intersection by the post office, I saw a sheriff's deputy at the stop sign. I was looking at the clouds, and looking at him, thinking, if there was about to be a tornado, surely he would pull up and let me know, right? Meh. He waved as he went by, probably wondering why I was staring so desperately at him, so I decided to keep going, and veered away from the house.
It was somewhere around this point of the run that I realized what I had been missing. I needed someone to tell me that I can't finish a 5K. (Someone besides myself.) I have removed all unsupportive people from my circle, which is great. But, there's still something in my character that pushes me harder when I am told I can't do it. Today, it was the weather that said, nope, you don't have 40 minutes before the flood gates open. You can't fit it in today. But I figure, what better way to wrap up the 5K, finally, than in the pouring rain with thunder and lightning and hail pounding around me. It would be festive, no?
Still, I was concerned, so as I rounded the post office, I sent off my first facebook-status-while-running, hoping someone would google the weather and post it in reply. No one did. That's cool. I wasn't real clear on what I needed, as I was texting while running.
Anyhoo, I round the post office and head down the long road that starts the top loop of the 8. There's a wee little dog and its owner ahead. And the dog mauled me. OK, it wasn't that bad. It actually did, I believe, attempt to bite my leg, but due to its tiny face and my giant leg muscles, apparently all I got was some drool. They're called ankle biters for a reason, and that's why I am always blogging doggie updates. Vicious crap machines.
I ran on, and got to the point where I had stopped on my last viable 5K attempt, and was ecstatic to still be going past the point of the crippling cramp. Granted, since I added on that extra block at the one mile mark, I had actually already ran farther than the last time.
This is it. I finish this street, and head up the heinous hill at the end. I was in sheer agony going up the hill. I made it, noting the ridiculous amount of Christmas decorations that had popped up at Tux's house, as I started my final leg back down the main road. It's still slightly uphill here, and I was just dying. I kept telling myself, you have run this stretch a billion times, in far worse condition that this. I crossed the street, because it seems somehow less difficult on that side, and I started repeating "If."
I think I very nearly blacked out along here. There were a couple of blocks where I don't really remember much. I just knew that I was too close to quit, so no matter what happened, I was finishing this thing. As I rounded the corner onto my street, I had the presence of mind to realize that right around there should be the actual 5K point. I had been running 40 minutes. (Later, I checked on the map, and that was the 5K point. I had done it.)
After all the commotion that made up this run, I still had one more neighbor to acknowledge, as I made the final push down my block. I ran up my alley, knowing with certainty I had ran more than 5K, and I almost felt like I could run some more!!! Absurdity! I decided it was best to stop, as I had already defeated the impending storm and the Finally 5K, and anything else just seemed like I would be pushing my luck.
I had been looking forward to The Victory Arms, but they didn't come until I was seated in my family room, in total disbelief. And they were pretty weak. I'll have to remember that if I ever run a real race, with a photographer. (Can you do Victory Arms if you don't win? I don't care.)
A couple of other notes...I only had to stop once, quickly, for traffic on this run. I also think this was the first run where I wore chapstick. My lips get sooo dry while I am running. If it wasn't this run, it was the next, but regardless, it is a lifesaver.
I started running on May 4. The program I used was 70 days, in theory wrapping up July 12th...I, however, had to repeat a couple of the weeks in the program, building my times and distances a bit more slowly. I finally made it to the 5K day on August 16th, a month late. I was pretty stoked that I made it, though. I wanted to give up many, many times. So I mapped out a distance of 5K, and set out to a huge Fail. I kept trying. Fail, Fail, Fail. A couple of times, I got close, but Fail. In frustration, and due to some small injuries, my runs have become more spaced out, but despite many threats to quit, and absolute certainty that I would never run 5K, I kept going. 22 tries later, I finally got through it on November 10th!! My 70 day program took 191 days and it feels GREAT!
You can't go from couch potato to 5K overnight; even if you can't do it in 70 days, it can be done, especially if you surround yourself with supportive people, put in a constant effort, and for the love of cocoa on Christmas, don't give up. And maybe a little homemade pumpkin bread will help, too. And rage at The Man. And threat of storm. And chapstick. Look, I knew all along there were a lot of variables to be managed. Now the question is...can I do it again..?
Weather: 72, Mostly Cloudy (Threat of Doom), 21mph Wind, 51% Humidity
Time: 1:45 pm; 41 minutes 45 seconds - Obviously my longest run time.
Distance: 5.19K (3.23mi) - Obviously, my longest distance.
Elevation: +92.2/-91/net 1.2 ft - For this momentous occasion, I included the elevation profile at the end of this post.
5K/10K: 40:07/1:24:47 - Nailed the 5K time. (I'll now be "Yay"-ing my goals of completing a 5K, and completing a 5K in under 45 minutes!) My times were not great, but better than in awhile. The threat of storms does wonders...Anyway, I counted it up, and this was my 14th best predictor overall, but only my 33rd best for just run times.
Overall, I have completed 23.62 hours of run/walk, covering 172.13K (106.97mi). My overall 5K/10K predictor average is 44:10 and 1:33:20.
My numbers for just running to date, which are less accurate, show 15.52 hours, covering 123.75K (76.89mi), with a 5K/10K predictor of 39:24/1:23:25.
And I go back to work Monday.
Ok, so this blog post title would look a lot cooler if I had thought far enough ahead to name my first post "Couch..." Especially since my first day of the Couch to 5K training plan found me sitting "on the couch for awhile. There's a lot of psyching up that has to go on, and that pisses me off, because I was so excited about this!" Way back on August 16th, as I set off in the early morning on what was supposed to be my first 5K distance, I thought of the title to this blog post, and it was the first time I realized I started this whole thing literally forcing myself off the Couch.
I am irritated to no end that I waited this long to blog this. I do, however, remember the details a bit more clearly than Monday's run.
Today started off like so many other days this year. A lot of hassle to go in for an interview for a job that turns out I would never want. This was approximately my 15th interview of the year. This one was my breaking point. I've stayed remarkably positive through this process, whether it's because I much prefer being poor to working, or maybe it is the endorphins from running, but this one just made me postal. Well, borderline postal. I came home and checked my email. I have actually been hired for part time temporary work, but the process has been long and arduous and it's been about a month, but I haven't actually started working yet. My email held the news that the office I had been placed in was only going to need me 2-3 days a week, instead of 5. Oh, there's postal.
I was already planning on running, but time was getting short before I had to go back and pick up Husband, and there was a threat of storms in the area. Not a "watch," just a threat, based mostly on the thick rolling clouds that were blowing through. However, when I read that email, I knew running was of the essence. As I was stretching, I was in full-on meltdown mode. Today was going to be a definite test to see if running was strong enough to bust stress. I was rocking a pair of shorts that actually had a pocket for my id, and a margarita t-shirt, as I would have preferred a margarita if I didn't have to pick up Husband.
Today I had ingested a Dew, homemade pumpkin bread, a couple of homemade whole grain crackers, and about 3 glasses of water.
I had written down the first stanza of "If" and left my mp3 behind. Partly because I knew the charge was low, but mostly because I thought this poem memorizing this was going to work, but not with music. So I set off with phone in one hand, and poem in the other - a lighter load than normal.
I was tired after 3 blocks.
My feet were still sore from Monday's run.
I was dizzy. (Argh!?)
But most of all, I was pissed. I went obsessively back through the morning's interview, which I always do, and find it leaves me with much less of a feeling of wasting time when I do it while running. I stomped through my rage about getting my hours cut before I even start a job. I stomped and stomped and stomped. By the time I got through the hills and to the end of the bottom of the Figure-8, about 1 mile, I was over it. Over it all.
I was much more concerned about the clouds. I had taken my sunglasses off, partly because it was so dark now, and partly to just keep a better eye on the clouds blowing in. (It was super windy, but it didn't seem to be hitting me in the face like normal.) I didn't like having my sunglasses off, because everyone and their mother was outside. I was spending a lot of precious energy saying hello, excuse me, and nodding kindly to people, even though I have sworn many times to not do that while I'm trying to run. I started worrying that I would have to stop when I got close to the house today, just for my own safety. I also wished I had my mp3, as I should be able to pick up the local radio stations on it and check the weather.
As I ran back towards the center of the Figure-8, I unfolded the poem. I had been worried I wouldn't adequately be able to run and read what was in my hand, but I managed. It was an okay distraction.
Nearing the intersection by the post office, I saw a sheriff's deputy at the stop sign. I was looking at the clouds, and looking at him, thinking, if there was about to be a tornado, surely he would pull up and let me know, right? Meh. He waved as he went by, probably wondering why I was staring so desperately at him, so I decided to keep going, and veered away from the house.
It was somewhere around this point of the run that I realized what I had been missing. I needed someone to tell me that I can't finish a 5K. (Someone besides myself.) I have removed all unsupportive people from my circle, which is great. But, there's still something in my character that pushes me harder when I am told I can't do it. Today, it was the weather that said, nope, you don't have 40 minutes before the flood gates open. You can't fit it in today. But I figure, what better way to wrap up the 5K, finally, than in the pouring rain with thunder and lightning and hail pounding around me. It would be festive, no?
Still, I was concerned, so as I rounded the post office, I sent off my first facebook-status-while-running, hoping someone would google the weather and post it in reply. No one did. That's cool. I wasn't real clear on what I needed, as I was texting while running.
Anyhoo, I round the post office and head down the long road that starts the top loop of the 8. There's a wee little dog and its owner ahead. And the dog mauled me. OK, it wasn't that bad. It actually did, I believe, attempt to bite my leg, but due to its tiny face and my giant leg muscles, apparently all I got was some drool. They're called ankle biters for a reason, and that's why I am always blogging doggie updates. Vicious crap machines.
I ran on, and got to the point where I had stopped on my last viable 5K attempt, and was ecstatic to still be going past the point of the crippling cramp. Granted, since I added on that extra block at the one mile mark, I had actually already ran farther than the last time.
This is it. I finish this street, and head up the heinous hill at the end. I was in sheer agony going up the hill. I made it, noting the ridiculous amount of Christmas decorations that had popped up at Tux's house, as I started my final leg back down the main road. It's still slightly uphill here, and I was just dying. I kept telling myself, you have run this stretch a billion times, in far worse condition that this. I crossed the street, because it seems somehow less difficult on that side, and I started repeating "If."
I think I very nearly blacked out along here. There were a couple of blocks where I don't really remember much. I just knew that I was too close to quit, so no matter what happened, I was finishing this thing. As I rounded the corner onto my street, I had the presence of mind to realize that right around there should be the actual 5K point. I had been running 40 minutes. (Later, I checked on the map, and that was the 5K point. I had done it.)
After all the commotion that made up this run, I still had one more neighbor to acknowledge, as I made the final push down my block. I ran up my alley, knowing with certainty I had ran more than 5K, and I almost felt like I could run some more!!! Absurdity! I decided it was best to stop, as I had already defeated the impending storm and the Finally 5K, and anything else just seemed like I would be pushing my luck.
I had been looking forward to The Victory Arms, but they didn't come until I was seated in my family room, in total disbelief. And they were pretty weak. I'll have to remember that if I ever run a real race, with a photographer. (Can you do Victory Arms if you don't win? I don't care.)
A couple of other notes...I only had to stop once, quickly, for traffic on this run. I also think this was the first run where I wore chapstick. My lips get sooo dry while I am running. If it wasn't this run, it was the next, but regardless, it is a lifesaver.
I started running on May 4. The program I used was 70 days, in theory wrapping up July 12th...I, however, had to repeat a couple of the weeks in the program, building my times and distances a bit more slowly. I finally made it to the 5K day on August 16th, a month late. I was pretty stoked that I made it, though. I wanted to give up many, many times. So I mapped out a distance of 5K, and set out to a huge Fail. I kept trying. Fail, Fail, Fail. A couple of times, I got close, but Fail. In frustration, and due to some small injuries, my runs have become more spaced out, but despite many threats to quit, and absolute certainty that I would never run 5K, I kept going. 22 tries later, I finally got through it on November 10th!! My 70 day program took 191 days and it feels GREAT!
You can't go from couch potato to 5K overnight; even if you can't do it in 70 days, it can be done, especially if you surround yourself with supportive people, put in a constant effort, and for the love of cocoa on Christmas, don't give up. And maybe a little homemade pumpkin bread will help, too. And rage at The Man. And threat of storm. And chapstick. Look, I knew all along there were a lot of variables to be managed. Now the question is...can I do it again..?
Weather: 72, Mostly Cloudy (Threat of Doom), 21mph Wind, 51% Humidity
Time: 1:45 pm; 41 minutes 45 seconds - Obviously my longest run time.
Distance: 5.19K (3.23mi) - Obviously, my longest distance.
Elevation: +92.2/-91/net 1.2 ft - For this momentous occasion, I included the elevation profile at the end of this post.
5K/10K: 40:07/1:24:47 - Nailed the 5K time. (I'll now be "Yay"-ing my goals of completing a 5K, and completing a 5K in under 45 minutes!) My times were not great, but better than in awhile. The threat of storms does wonders...Anyway, I counted it up, and this was my 14th best predictor overall, but only my 33rd best for just run times.
Overall, I have completed 23.62 hours of run/walk, covering 172.13K (106.97mi). My overall 5K/10K predictor average is 44:10 and 1:33:20.
My numbers for just running to date, which are less accurate, show 15.52 hours, covering 123.75K (76.89mi), with a 5K/10K predictor of 39:24/1:23:25.
And I go back to work Monday.
Ok, so this blog post title would look a lot cooler if I had thought far enough ahead to name my first post "Couch..." Especially since my first day of the Couch to 5K training plan found me sitting "on the couch for awhile. There's a lot of psyching up that has to go on, and that pisses me off, because I was so excited about this!" Way back on August 16th, as I set off in the early morning on what was supposed to be my first 5K distance, I thought of the title to this blog post, and it was the first time I realized I started this whole thing literally forcing myself off the Couch.
Things Worth Memorizing
After my run on November 8th, I knew I had to find something to memorize while running. I have been threatening this from the beginning, as it was a trick my blogging runner in the Netherlands used. I flipped through my giant book o' Shakespeare, and thought about the Constitution, or maybe state capitols. I really couldn't latch on to anything that interested me.
I sat down to the Google, and compiled a list. I decided to post the poems here for my future reference. While looking, I also thought about my book, "Poems of Childhood," which probably has some memorizable poems in it, all of which I have loved since I was a wee. I also thought about looking into some Pablo Neruda. In the meantime, I marked the following down.
Elizabeth Bishop, "Sonnet" (BTW, Googling for Elizabeth Bennett, heroine of "Pride and Prejudice," gets you nowhere when looking for Ms. Bishop's poem):
I am in need of music that would flow
Over my fretful, feeling finger-tips,
Over my bitter-tainted, trembling lips,
With melody, deep, clear, and liquid-slow.
Oh, for the healing swaying, old and low,
Of some song sung to rest the tired dead,
A song to fall like water on my head,
And over quivering limbs, dream flushed to glow!
There is a magic made by melody:
A spell of rest, and quiet breath, and cool
Heart, that sinks through fading colors deep
To the subaqueous stillness of the sea,
And floats forever in a moon-green pool,
Held in the arms of rhythm and of sleep.
Perhaps some "Fiddler Jones," from Edgar Lee Masters:
The Earth keeps some vibration going
There in your heart, and that is you.
And if the people find you can fiddle,
Why, fiddle you must, for all your life.
What do you see, a harvest of clover?
Or a meadow to walk through to the river?
The wind’s in the corn; you rub your hands
For beeves hereafter ready for market;
Or else you hear the rustle of skirts
Like the girls when dancing at Little Grove.
To Cooney Potter a pillar of dust
Or whirling leaves meant ruinous drouth;
They looked to me like Red-Head Sammy
Stepping it off, to “Toor-a-Loor.”
How could I till my forty acres
Not to speak of getting more,
With a medley of horns, bassoons and piccolos
Stirred in my brain by crows and robins
And the creak of a wind-mill—only these?
And I never started to plow in my life
That some one did not stop in the road
And take me away to a dance or picnic.
I ended up with forty acres;
I ended up with a broken fiddle—
And a broken laugh, and a thousand memories,
And not a single regret.
Ahh, or of course, "The Road Not Taken," by Robert Frost:
Two roads diverged in a yellow wood,
And sorry I could not travel both
And be one traveler, long I stood
And looked down one as far as I could
To where it bent in the undergrowth;
Then took the other, as just as fair,
And having perhaps the better claim,
Because it was grassy and wanted wear;
Though as for that the passing there
Had worn them really about the same,
And both that morning equally lay
In leaves no step had trodden black.
Oh, I kept the first for another day!
Yet knowing how way leads on to way,
I doubted if I should ever come back.
I shall be telling this with a sigh
Somewhere ages and ages hence:
Two roads diverged in a wood, and I—
I took the one less traveled by,
And that has made all the difference.
But eventually, I settled on the first item I will be focusing on memorizing.
"If," by Rudyard Kipling:
If you can keep your head when all about you
Are losing theirs and blaming it on you;
If you can trust yourself when all men doubt you,
But make allowance for their doubting too;
If you can wait and not be tired by waiting,
Or, being lied about, don't deal in lies,
Or, being hated, don't give way to hating,
And yet don't look too good, nor talk too wise;
If you can dream - and not make dreams your master;
If you can think - and not make thoughts your aim;
If you can meet with triumph and disaster
And treat those two imposters just the same;
If you can bear to hear the truth you've spoken
Twisted by knaves to make a trap for fools,
Or watch the things you gave your life to broken,
And stoop and build 'em up with wornout tools;
If you can make one heap of all your winnings
And risk it on one turn of pitch-and-toss,
And lose, and start again at your beginnings
And never breath a word about your loss;
If you can force your heart and nerve and sinew
To serve your turn long after they are gone,
And so hold on when there is nothing in you
Except the Will which says to them: "Hold on";
If you can talk with crowds and keep your virtue,
Or walk with kings - nor lose the common touch;
If neither foes nor loving friends can hurt you;
If all men count with you, but none too much;
If you can fill the unforgiving minute
With sixty seconds' worth of distance run -
Yours is the Earth and everything that's in it,
And - which is more - you'll be a Man my son!
I can hardly wait to start memorizing it - such a great poem!!
I sat down to the Google, and compiled a list. I decided to post the poems here for my future reference. While looking, I also thought about my book, "Poems of Childhood," which probably has some memorizable poems in it, all of which I have loved since I was a wee. I also thought about looking into some Pablo Neruda. In the meantime, I marked the following down.
Elizabeth Bishop, "Sonnet" (BTW, Googling for Elizabeth Bennett, heroine of "Pride and Prejudice," gets you nowhere when looking for Ms. Bishop's poem):
I am in need of music that would flow
Over my fretful, feeling finger-tips,
Over my bitter-tainted, trembling lips,
With melody, deep, clear, and liquid-slow.
Oh, for the healing swaying, old and low,
Of some song sung to rest the tired dead,
A song to fall like water on my head,
And over quivering limbs, dream flushed to glow!
There is a magic made by melody:
A spell of rest, and quiet breath, and cool
Heart, that sinks through fading colors deep
To the subaqueous stillness of the sea,
And floats forever in a moon-green pool,
Held in the arms of rhythm and of sleep.
Perhaps some "Fiddler Jones," from Edgar Lee Masters:
The Earth keeps some vibration going
There in your heart, and that is you.
And if the people find you can fiddle,
Why, fiddle you must, for all your life.
What do you see, a harvest of clover?
Or a meadow to walk through to the river?
The wind’s in the corn; you rub your hands
For beeves hereafter ready for market;
Or else you hear the rustle of skirts
Like the girls when dancing at Little Grove.
To Cooney Potter a pillar of dust
Or whirling leaves meant ruinous drouth;
They looked to me like Red-Head Sammy
Stepping it off, to “Toor-a-Loor.”
How could I till my forty acres
Not to speak of getting more,
With a medley of horns, bassoons and piccolos
Stirred in my brain by crows and robins
And the creak of a wind-mill—only these?
And I never started to plow in my life
That some one did not stop in the road
And take me away to a dance or picnic.
I ended up with forty acres;
I ended up with a broken fiddle—
And a broken laugh, and a thousand memories,
And not a single regret.
Ahh, or of course, "The Road Not Taken," by Robert Frost:
Two roads diverged in a yellow wood,
And sorry I could not travel both
And be one traveler, long I stood
And looked down one as far as I could
To where it bent in the undergrowth;
Then took the other, as just as fair,
And having perhaps the better claim,
Because it was grassy and wanted wear;
Though as for that the passing there
Had worn them really about the same,
And both that morning equally lay
In leaves no step had trodden black.
Oh, I kept the first for another day!
Yet knowing how way leads on to way,
I doubted if I should ever come back.
I shall be telling this with a sigh
Somewhere ages and ages hence:
Two roads diverged in a wood, and I—
I took the one less traveled by,
And that has made all the difference.
But eventually, I settled on the first item I will be focusing on memorizing.
"If," by Rudyard Kipling:
If you can keep your head when all about you
Are losing theirs and blaming it on you;
If you can trust yourself when all men doubt you,
But make allowance for their doubting too;
If you can wait and not be tired by waiting,
Or, being lied about, don't deal in lies,
Or, being hated, don't give way to hating,
And yet don't look too good, nor talk too wise;
If you can dream - and not make dreams your master;
If you can think - and not make thoughts your aim;
If you can meet with triumph and disaster
And treat those two imposters just the same;
If you can bear to hear the truth you've spoken
Twisted by knaves to make a trap for fools,
Or watch the things you gave your life to broken,
And stoop and build 'em up with wornout tools;
If you can make one heap of all your winnings
And risk it on one turn of pitch-and-toss,
And lose, and start again at your beginnings
And never breath a word about your loss;
If you can force your heart and nerve and sinew
To serve your turn long after they are gone,
And so hold on when there is nothing in you
Except the Will which says to them: "Hold on";
If you can talk with crowds and keep your virtue,
Or walk with kings - nor lose the common touch;
If neither foes nor loving friends can hurt you;
If all men count with you, but none too much;
If you can fill the unforgiving minute
With sixty seconds' worth of distance run -
Yours is the Earth and everything that's in it,
And - which is more - you'll be a Man my son!
I can hardly wait to start memorizing it - such a great poem!!
Day 189: Losing Focus
Run Day: Monday Nov. 8.
Oy, waiting 3 weeks to post on a run was not a great idea. I'll make the most of my notes and get on to the next, more exciting posts.
I'll start off by pointing out it had been two weeks since my last run, and my toes were still sore when I went for this run. I believe I set off with the mindset that I would run the 5K, but I think I was just going to be happy with however far I made it, given that it had been a few weeks.
So I had made some homemade mini raw bars and ate some of them, a Dew, and a little water. I was rocking my compression pants, and I felt a little sick (now, I believe that was like sinuses, not tummy, not sure). I packed my mp3 and took off. My legs were very heavy, which was likely due to the compression pants as much as the break in running, and I had the wind in my face.
When I got to the very bottom of my Figure-8 route, I went an extra block before I turned around and ran back onto the route. This would make the route go from just shy of a 5K, to just over.
The worst part of leaving a massive gap in between runs is this run. It's like a throwaway. I know I can't do a 5K out of the blue, but running a shorter distance, and then having a rest day, before I can truly attempt the 5K again is just so frustrating.
Running back to the middle of the Figure-8, I was super tired, my left knee hurt, the bottoms of my arches hurt, I had slight side cramps. I tried to focus on ANYTHING, but my mind was just jumping around, and no tricks were working. I kept telling myself that I wouldn't be stopping at the house when I got close. Just. Keep. Going.
As I approached the turnoff for the post office, which would take me into the top of the Figure-8, I remembered my injured toes, but they weren't hurting! I quickly tried to think about something else before I thought them into pain! Per usual, there was a lot of traffic at this intersection, and I decided not to cross. I was nearly tapped anyway, and only a block from my street.
I kept running down the main road, and unbelievably, I ran past my street. This will stand as one of my more amazing running moments. There's a slight uphill on the other side of my street and despite fearing it, I just kept going. I was so impressed with myself for not going home, that I started thinking about how my revised route could be 'fixed' and still be 5K.
Really, I wanted to go for 30 minutes. Or as far as possible.
I made it 31 minutes, about halfway down the main road (where I turn off to go to the hills on the street with no sidewalks). I believe I was just starting to decide if I was going to try to walk a bit, then run it out, when I realized I had full-on jelly legs. I think I have taken jelly legs in vain on here before. My legs were jelly. I turned around immediately. I could hardly stand up once I stopped running, and I wasn't sure how I was going to make it back home.
I made it back very, very slowly. As I walked, I became aware that everything hurt. My knee, feet, legs, teeth, hair, and I had a headache. It was a rough walk home. After I got home, and sat down for awhile, I got up and my toes hurt super bad. And I couldn't remember why, thank you, Exhaustion. Rough day!
Weather: 71, Sunny, 16mph wind, 31% Humidity
Time: 12:30 pm; 31 minutes
Distance: 3.8K (2.36mi) - I was super-stoked when I saw just how far I had run after a break. It's not a 5K, but I was happy with it.
Elevation: +48.5/-39.6/net 8.9 ft
5K/10K: 41:42/1:28:09
It wasn't until today that I realized just how great this run actually was. My previous best times for straight runs were 30 (3.91K), 28 (3.52K), and 32 (3.96K). Yay!
Oy, waiting 3 weeks to post on a run was not a great idea. I'll make the most of my notes and get on to the next, more exciting posts.
I'll start off by pointing out it had been two weeks since my last run, and my toes were still sore when I went for this run. I believe I set off with the mindset that I would run the 5K, but I think I was just going to be happy with however far I made it, given that it had been a few weeks.
So I had made some homemade mini raw bars and ate some of them, a Dew, and a little water. I was rocking my compression pants, and I felt a little sick (now, I believe that was like sinuses, not tummy, not sure). I packed my mp3 and took off. My legs were very heavy, which was likely due to the compression pants as much as the break in running, and I had the wind in my face.
When I got to the very bottom of my Figure-8 route, I went an extra block before I turned around and ran back onto the route. This would make the route go from just shy of a 5K, to just over.
The worst part of leaving a massive gap in between runs is this run. It's like a throwaway. I know I can't do a 5K out of the blue, but running a shorter distance, and then having a rest day, before I can truly attempt the 5K again is just so frustrating.
Running back to the middle of the Figure-8, I was super tired, my left knee hurt, the bottoms of my arches hurt, I had slight side cramps. I tried to focus on ANYTHING, but my mind was just jumping around, and no tricks were working. I kept telling myself that I wouldn't be stopping at the house when I got close. Just. Keep. Going.
As I approached the turnoff for the post office, which would take me into the top of the Figure-8, I remembered my injured toes, but they weren't hurting! I quickly tried to think about something else before I thought them into pain! Per usual, there was a lot of traffic at this intersection, and I decided not to cross. I was nearly tapped anyway, and only a block from my street.
I kept running down the main road, and unbelievably, I ran past my street. This will stand as one of my more amazing running moments. There's a slight uphill on the other side of my street and despite fearing it, I just kept going. I was so impressed with myself for not going home, that I started thinking about how my revised route could be 'fixed' and still be 5K.
Really, I wanted to go for 30 minutes. Or as far as possible.
I made it 31 minutes, about halfway down the main road (where I turn off to go to the hills on the street with no sidewalks). I believe I was just starting to decide if I was going to try to walk a bit, then run it out, when I realized I had full-on jelly legs. I think I have taken jelly legs in vain on here before. My legs were jelly. I turned around immediately. I could hardly stand up once I stopped running, and I wasn't sure how I was going to make it back home.
I made it back very, very slowly. As I walked, I became aware that everything hurt. My knee, feet, legs, teeth, hair, and I had a headache. It was a rough walk home. After I got home, and sat down for awhile, I got up and my toes hurt super bad. And I couldn't remember why, thank you, Exhaustion. Rough day!
Weather: 71, Sunny, 16mph wind, 31% Humidity
Time: 12:30 pm; 31 minutes
Distance: 3.8K (2.36mi) - I was super-stoked when I saw just how far I had run after a break. It's not a 5K, but I was happy with it.
Elevation: +48.5/-39.6/net 8.9 ft
5K/10K: 41:42/1:28:09
It wasn't until today that I realized just how great this run actually was. My previous best times for straight runs were 30 (3.91K), 28 (3.52K), and 32 (3.96K). Yay!
Friday, November 5, 2010
The Agony of De'Feet
Awhile back I mentioned I thought I may have broken my toes on my right foot when the dog and I raced through the dining room. That turned out to be a pretty minor deal and I'm sure nothing was actually broken. I've been long healed from the incident.
Last night, I was walking through the dining room and tripped over my suitcase (yes, we got home Monday night so I probably deserved it) and most certainly shattered some toe bone in my left foot. Oy, it's excruciating. It's the three middle toes and it hurts to even consider moving them (not that I can, I have tried). It hurts to raise them off the ground, it hurts to press them into the ground.
I've been wanting to run pretty much everyday since my last run, but couldn't muster the energy in New Orleans, and couldn't face the cold when we got back. I also am not feeling real great in general, but it's mostly the cold keeping me in. I was hoping to get to the gym if my stomach could keep me upright long enough. Alas, now I won't be running for a bit no matter how much I want to.
So since this blog started in an effort to track my progress towards running past jazz musicians, and in an attempt to explain why I was so tired in NOLA, I thought I would post a list of the bands we saw on our trip.
We went to the Voodoo Experience, which is a 3-day music festival with 6 stages. Music plays from about 11 am to 11 pm, a little earlier on the last day. They feature all types of music, which is great, because I have the most schizophrenic music tastes on this earth. All modes of transportation drop you off a mile from the closest stage to the entrance.
A lot of shows overlap, so we didn't see whole sets of most of these, but these are the artists we saw...also, there was a dance/DJ stage - we never went to it, but you could hear/feel a lot of those artists all weekend (I'm only noting one DJ below as we could clearly hear them for quite awhile).
Friday:
COOT
Fitz & The Tantrums
Creole String Beans
Miracle at St Anna (we could only hear them as we were walking around and they were AWFUL)
Johnny Sketch & The Dirty Notes
Feufollet
Stanton Moore Trio plus Anders Osborne and Robert Walkter
Eli "Paperboy" Reed and The True Loves
Rosie Ledet
Metric
Weezer
Galactic with special guests Cyril Neville & Corey Henry
Raphael Saadiq
Saturday:
Treme Brass Band with Uncle Lionel Batiste
River City Extension
Rebirth Brass Band
Cage the Elephant (I love them, this was going to be one my top shows. They should pay their producer more because they FN SUCK live.)
Florence & The Machine (like 1 song, I hate them.)
Buckwheat Zydeco
Street Sweeper Social Club (I knew Husband was going to hate this show - I only knew 1-2 of their songs, but I thought I would really enjoy. I did - it turned out to be in the 3-way tie for my favorite show. We were going to just watch half and then go watch Jakob Dylan & Three Legs. Husband went to see Jakob Dylan, I stayed for SSSC.)
Ozzy Fn Osbourne. (Hollleee Crap. I was excited to finally see Ozzy, but I wasn't expecting to be blown off the face of the earth by him. Husband informed me that Sharon mooched a couple of Rob Zombie's guys to play with Ozzy and it SHOWS. I was glad I got to see the drummer who played with Rob when Husband caught an autographed drum top which is hanging in our foyer. I feel connected to that piece now. He played everything - it was absolutely amazing. I almost fell over when he started "Fairies wear boots." I don't know exactly how I managed it, but THAT was the first Sabbath song I knew and perhaps had a hand in making me the upstanding citizen I am today. It was my gateway to the dark side. He played a couple new songs, too, which I did not know, but rocked way harder than the older stuff. Three-way tie for best show of the weekend. And SSSC was the PERFECT band to go on before him.)
Sunday was a mess. First, we stayed out till 5 am the night before. Second, something was wrong with the St Charles Avenue Streetcar - they kept going out, but none were coming back. Plus, it's the shortest day anyway. Then one of the acts had technical difficulties and it screwed up a couple shows we really wanted to see. Sadly, we didn't make it in time to see the Zydepunks. Maybe next year. We did see...
JP, Chrissie [Hynde] and the Fairground Boys
Voice of the Wetland All-Stars (including Dr. John and Tab Benoit)
Toubab Krewe
deadmau5 (this was the huge DJ act of the weekend - we were laying on the ground, across the park. There was no band on the stage we were by at that time. I could feel the ground pulsing under me. We could definitely hear it.)
Macy Gray (just barely caught the end)
Trombone Shorty & Orleans Avenue (Blew us out of the park - perfect end to the festival. He is A- Ma-Zing. And that closes out the 3-way tie for favorite act of the weekend.)
There may have been a couple acts I missed, but I must not have been paying too much attention if I can't remember them a week later, so there you have it.
In closing, the Voodoo production team didn't even give us a week to get another paycheck (for those who actually work anyway) before putting Voodoo 2011 tickets on sale for the lowest price they'll be selling them at, $75 for the weekend. I believe they go up to $150 by the time the weekend actually rolls around, so, as Ferris would say, if you have the means, I highly recommend picking one up. We didn't even see most of the "top" bands that played this year. $75 is the deal of the century for music lovers who can still hang with a festival crowd.
Till I can run again...
Last night, I was walking through the dining room and tripped over my suitcase (yes, we got home Monday night so I probably deserved it) and most certainly shattered some toe bone in my left foot. Oy, it's excruciating. It's the three middle toes and it hurts to even consider moving them (not that I can, I have tried). It hurts to raise them off the ground, it hurts to press them into the ground.
I've been wanting to run pretty much everyday since my last run, but couldn't muster the energy in New Orleans, and couldn't face the cold when we got back. I also am not feeling real great in general, but it's mostly the cold keeping me in. I was hoping to get to the gym if my stomach could keep me upright long enough. Alas, now I won't be running for a bit no matter how much I want to.
So since this blog started in an effort to track my progress towards running past jazz musicians, and in an attempt to explain why I was so tired in NOLA, I thought I would post a list of the bands we saw on our trip.
We went to the Voodoo Experience, which is a 3-day music festival with 6 stages. Music plays from about 11 am to 11 pm, a little earlier on the last day. They feature all types of music, which is great, because I have the most schizophrenic music tastes on this earth. All modes of transportation drop you off a mile from the closest stage to the entrance.
A lot of shows overlap, so we didn't see whole sets of most of these, but these are the artists we saw...also, there was a dance/DJ stage - we never went to it, but you could hear/feel a lot of those artists all weekend (I'm only noting one DJ below as we could clearly hear them for quite awhile).
Friday:
COOT
Fitz & The Tantrums
Creole String Beans
Miracle at St Anna (we could only hear them as we were walking around and they were AWFUL)
Johnny Sketch & The Dirty Notes
Feufollet
Stanton Moore Trio plus Anders Osborne and Robert Walkter
Eli "Paperboy" Reed and The True Loves
Rosie Ledet
Metric
Weezer
Galactic with special guests Cyril Neville & Corey Henry
Raphael Saadiq
Saturday:
Treme Brass Band with Uncle Lionel Batiste
River City Extension
Rebirth Brass Band
Cage the Elephant (I love them, this was going to be one my top shows. They should pay their producer more because they FN SUCK live.)
Florence & The Machine (like 1 song, I hate them.)
Buckwheat Zydeco
Street Sweeper Social Club (I knew Husband was going to hate this show - I only knew 1-2 of their songs, but I thought I would really enjoy. I did - it turned out to be in the 3-way tie for my favorite show. We were going to just watch half and then go watch Jakob Dylan & Three Legs. Husband went to see Jakob Dylan, I stayed for SSSC.)
Ozzy Fn Osbourne. (Hollleee Crap. I was excited to finally see Ozzy, but I wasn't expecting to be blown off the face of the earth by him. Husband informed me that Sharon mooched a couple of Rob Zombie's guys to play with Ozzy and it SHOWS. I was glad I got to see the drummer who played with Rob when Husband caught an autographed drum top which is hanging in our foyer. I feel connected to that piece now. He played everything - it was absolutely amazing. I almost fell over when he started "Fairies wear boots." I don't know exactly how I managed it, but THAT was the first Sabbath song I knew and perhaps had a hand in making me the upstanding citizen I am today. It was my gateway to the dark side. He played a couple new songs, too, which I did not know, but rocked way harder than the older stuff. Three-way tie for best show of the weekend. And SSSC was the PERFECT band to go on before him.)
Sunday was a mess. First, we stayed out till 5 am the night before. Second, something was wrong with the St Charles Avenue Streetcar - they kept going out, but none were coming back. Plus, it's the shortest day anyway. Then one of the acts had technical difficulties and it screwed up a couple shows we really wanted to see. Sadly, we didn't make it in time to see the Zydepunks. Maybe next year. We did see...
JP, Chrissie [Hynde] and the Fairground Boys
Voice of the Wetland All-Stars (including Dr. John and Tab Benoit)
Toubab Krewe
deadmau5 (this was the huge DJ act of the weekend - we were laying on the ground, across the park. There was no band on the stage we were by at that time. I could feel the ground pulsing under me. We could definitely hear it.)
Macy Gray (just barely caught the end)
Trombone Shorty & Orleans Avenue (Blew us out of the park - perfect end to the festival. He is A- Ma-Zing. And that closes out the 3-way tie for favorite act of the weekend.)
There may have been a couple acts I missed, but I must not have been paying too much attention if I can't remember them a week later, so there you have it.
In closing, the Voodoo production team didn't even give us a week to get another paycheck (for those who actually work anyway) before putting Voodoo 2011 tickets on sale for the lowest price they'll be selling them at, $75 for the weekend. I believe they go up to $150 by the time the weekend actually rolls around, so, as Ferris would say, if you have the means, I highly recommend picking one up. We didn't even see most of the "top" bands that played this year. $75 is the deal of the century for music lovers who can still hang with a festival crowd.
Till I can run again...
Thursday, November 4, 2010
Note to Self
No matter how much you love running on vacation, and no matter how desperately you wanted to run down the neutral ground in the Garden District in New Orleans, and no matter how hard you worked to squeeze your running shoes in your suitcase, you will never, never, never, ever, ever feel like going for a run while you are in New Orleans.
For beignet's sake, you stayed out to 5am one night. When precisely did you think you would feel like running after that misadventure?
Oh sure, you even took the time to email the local running club ahead of time because you weren't sure if the exact location of your hotel was a little shady. That's all well and good, but it's a mile walk just to get in to the Voodoo stages, nevermind all the walking about once you're inside!
Yep, you watched lots of other runners go up and down the neutral ground, but you could hardly stay upright watching them from the sheer exhaustion that is New Orleans at Halloween.
So do us all a huge favor and just leave your stupid running gear at home next year. It's simply never going to happen.
For beignet's sake, you stayed out to 5am one night. When precisely did you think you would feel like running after that misadventure?
Oh sure, you even took the time to email the local running club ahead of time because you weren't sure if the exact location of your hotel was a little shady. That's all well and good, but it's a mile walk just to get in to the Voodoo stages, nevermind all the walking about once you're inside!
Yep, you watched lots of other runners go up and down the neutral ground, but you could hardly stay upright watching them from the sheer exhaustion that is New Orleans at Halloween.
So do us all a huge favor and just leave your stupid running gear at home next year. It's simply never going to happen.
Monday, October 25, 2010
Day 175: Best Run Ever*
Today started off like any other day, Dew, water, homemade applesauce. OK that last thing is new. And delicious. I ended up with a pretty powerful stomachache, so I had a gingin before I ran also. I also sprayed my B&BW mist again. In my pursuit of figuring out why I can't do a 5K, I decided to switch one thing up - I put in my contacts again. I started running with my glasses a couple of months ago, and I've often missed my sunglasses. Today wasn't that sunny, but it was super windy, so I thought I should wear the sunglasses anyway. (Turned out to be mostly sunny while I was running so it worked out well.)
So I set out. My stomach was KILLING me. I was worried. However, I had a plan, and I had to give it a go. I was going to run my original, mostly flat 5K route. I figure after taking on the hilly route, this should be a breeze. I was going to do this after I tried the hills the first couple of times, but I instead took two weeks off altogether.
As I headed down the flattest part of the route, I was already thirsty. So much for getting my water back in check. Gosh, I have a long way to go at this point. And it's super windy, which is not helping. As I chug along, I note the excellent music so far. Lenny Kravitz singing "American Woman" is a fantastic run boost.
Actually, I was feeling pretty good at this point...My breathing is outstanding, and I feel pretty light on my feet...My knees had been a little sore over the weekend, but all was right with the world at this point.
Ooh! I even remembered that I had to run up 2 more blocks, then re-trace my steps before I turn for home. Something I've forgotten in the past and was surprised to remember today.
I'm also "cool as a cucumber, fresh as a melon" thanks to my Cucumber Melon B&BW scent and ala Muhammad Ali...although, I'm not ashamed to admit, it took me 36 hours to realize I was imitating Ali ("Float like a butterfly, sting like a bee") while I kept repeating that throughout the ENTIRE run.
But, back to that wind. I was noticing the way it was blowing, and that it would be straight in my face for the very last leg of my run. That stretch comes up the main road, which is just barely uphill. At the end of a 5K. Into the wind. I tried really hard to figure out how to remedy this, but I couldn't figure out how to keep the route long enough while actually running. I finally decided that IF I even made it that far, I would just hope the wind was calm for a few minutes.
I really couldn't get over how easy I was breathing. I've noticed lately that it's been getting better, and I'm ecstatic about it. I hope it's not just because the humidity has gone down..
As I headed back around the school, I was entering the only real hilly section of this route, and while trying to fight through it, I was taking in yet another ridiculously detailed Halloween yard decoration. There was a lot of little things to look at, and as I passed the far side of the property, I noticed the larger display, and RIGHT when I went past, I noticed the homeowner mixed in with the scarecrows and she about scared the crap out of me. She was busily arranging her display, and I don't believe she realized just how effective it all was.
My legs were getting pretty heavy at this point, and the hills were taking their toll. I was also nearing the dreaded halfway point, where it is so easy to stop and walk home. Then came on a jazzy "Little Drummer Boy," which kept me going at just the right time.
Almost unbelievably, I made it to, and around the post office. I was getting pretty stoked at this point, and tried to reign it in. I still had a long way to go, but only a couple more blocks to get to my longest run (straight run/no walking). Cool as a cucumber. Fresh as a melon.
I start down the long downhill, wind at my back. I see that a car is about to pull into the driveway ahead of me, and I was going pretty slow at this point, so I didn't want to enrage them by slowly crossing in front of them. I stop. They stop. This happens a lot. I know I should be happy people are capable of politeness, but I attribute it instead to them being too stupid to continue with their forward motion. So I growl, "Come on," presumably under my breath, but I really don't care. I mean, KNOW. So this fat, inbred, hill person, with his even more inbred beast of an adult kid, pull in front of me, and the guy says "Guess ya weren't runnin fast enough." Clearly. Not. Douche. Bag.
Cool as a cucumber. Fresh as a melon.
Here I should note that this was my 4th "stop" in today's run. I had previously stopped very, very briefly for traffic. While this was my longest stop, none of them were for more than a few seconds. It was nice to only have to remember the stops instead of the times for all the run/walk/run/walks.
What's this, Poison's "Rock N Roll All Nite"? I am going to finish this thing! I just passed my longest point! I am a rock star! I am going too fast down this long hill! I am going to get to my house and puke homemade applesauce! I CAN SEE THE END OF THE STREET! (Granted, that means, there's a hill, and I still have to run back down the main street, but -) I GOT THIS!!
Every. Single. Time I get cocky, it all goes to hell. I got THE sharpest, most intolerable side cramp I have had in this whole 175 days. Well, there's NO way I am letting a pathetic side cramp stop me. I continue. I got to a bit of shade at about the same time I almost fell down/into the wall providing the shade. I was a mess. I continued on. I made it to the end of the block, where I stopped, in pure screaming agony. I was one baby-sized block from the turnaround. I was PISSED!
I had run 32 minutes. 3.96K. 2.46 miles. All records.*
There was a small wall here, so I leaned on it, and did some calf stretches. I don't know what you are supposed to do to get rid of a stomach cramp, but this seemed to help. After about 30 seconds, I stomped on. I was furious. I was a seething ball of rage. I stormed to the corner, up the hill, past Tux's house, and down the next baby block.
After my last run, where my walks were 8 and 7 minutes, I realized I really need to force myself to walk only 5 minutes, like on the Couch to 5K Plan. So I would only let myself have 5 minutes.
I got to the corner of that baby block in 3 minutes, and took off running. Screw 5 minutes. I don't need it. I walked .3K/.19m.
Well, I have a long run home, and I refuse to stop. The "uphill" isn't a problem. The wind isn't a problem. My side isn't a problem - why couldn't I stay upright a few more minutes!? There were, however, a TON of people out today. I delayed my Sunday run to Monday, when there should have been fewer people out. I was wrong. Unemployment is thriving.
Completely unbelievably, I made it the rest of the way home. It took another 6.5 minutes, for a total of 41.5 minutes/4.95K/3.07m (seriously?!). I marched right up the steps. I was awesome today.
Once inside, my left knee started hurting pretty bad. I iced it for quite awhile. My right calf was sore, too. Perhaps from the random mid-run stretches? None of this kept me from taking the dog for his walk, though.
Weather: 74, Sunny, 23 mph Wind, 58% Humidity
Time: 1:30pm; Run 32, Walk 3, Run 6.5
Distance: 4.95K (3.07m)
Elevation: +89.6/-87.6/net +2 ft
5K/10K: 41:58/1:28:42
Run Time: 38.5 minutes
Distance: 4.65K (2.88m) - I walked 6% today.
5K/10K: 41:39/1:28:02
Prior to today, I had run for 30 minutes on the last day of the Couch to 5K, which covered 3.91K. I had clocked a 28 minute run since then, at 3.52K. Obviously, my 32 minute 3.96K pre-cramp run was quite exciting. 38.5 minutes/4.65K is also my new best time and distance for total just run time.
*By me. So far.
So I set out. My stomach was KILLING me. I was worried. However, I had a plan, and I had to give it a go. I was going to run my original, mostly flat 5K route. I figure after taking on the hilly route, this should be a breeze. I was going to do this after I tried the hills the first couple of times, but I instead took two weeks off altogether.
As I headed down the flattest part of the route, I was already thirsty. So much for getting my water back in check. Gosh, I have a long way to go at this point. And it's super windy, which is not helping. As I chug along, I note the excellent music so far. Lenny Kravitz singing "American Woman" is a fantastic run boost.
Actually, I was feeling pretty good at this point...My breathing is outstanding, and I feel pretty light on my feet...My knees had been a little sore over the weekend, but all was right with the world at this point.
Ooh! I even remembered that I had to run up 2 more blocks, then re-trace my steps before I turn for home. Something I've forgotten in the past and was surprised to remember today.
I'm also "cool as a cucumber, fresh as a melon" thanks to my Cucumber Melon B&BW scent and ala Muhammad Ali...although, I'm not ashamed to admit, it took me 36 hours to realize I was imitating Ali ("Float like a butterfly, sting like a bee") while I kept repeating that throughout the ENTIRE run.
But, back to that wind. I was noticing the way it was blowing, and that it would be straight in my face for the very last leg of my run. That stretch comes up the main road, which is just barely uphill. At the end of a 5K. Into the wind. I tried really hard to figure out how to remedy this, but I couldn't figure out how to keep the route long enough while actually running. I finally decided that IF I even made it that far, I would just hope the wind was calm for a few minutes.
I really couldn't get over how easy I was breathing. I've noticed lately that it's been getting better, and I'm ecstatic about it. I hope it's not just because the humidity has gone down..
As I headed back around the school, I was entering the only real hilly section of this route, and while trying to fight through it, I was taking in yet another ridiculously detailed Halloween yard decoration. There was a lot of little things to look at, and as I passed the far side of the property, I noticed the larger display, and RIGHT when I went past, I noticed the homeowner mixed in with the scarecrows and she about scared the crap out of me. She was busily arranging her display, and I don't believe she realized just how effective it all was.
My legs were getting pretty heavy at this point, and the hills were taking their toll. I was also nearing the dreaded halfway point, where it is so easy to stop and walk home. Then came on a jazzy "Little Drummer Boy," which kept me going at just the right time.
Almost unbelievably, I made it to, and around the post office. I was getting pretty stoked at this point, and tried to reign it in. I still had a long way to go, but only a couple more blocks to get to my longest run (straight run/no walking). Cool as a cucumber. Fresh as a melon.
I start down the long downhill, wind at my back. I see that a car is about to pull into the driveway ahead of me, and I was going pretty slow at this point, so I didn't want to enrage them by slowly crossing in front of them. I stop. They stop. This happens a lot. I know I should be happy people are capable of politeness, but I attribute it instead to them being too stupid to continue with their forward motion. So I growl, "Come on," presumably under my breath, but I really don't care. I mean, KNOW. So this fat, inbred, hill person, with his even more inbred beast of an adult kid, pull in front of me, and the guy says "Guess ya weren't runnin fast enough." Clearly. Not. Douche. Bag.
Cool as a cucumber. Fresh as a melon.
Here I should note that this was my 4th "stop" in today's run. I had previously stopped very, very briefly for traffic. While this was my longest stop, none of them were for more than a few seconds. It was nice to only have to remember the stops instead of the times for all the run/walk/run/walks.
What's this, Poison's "Rock N Roll All Nite"? I am going to finish this thing! I just passed my longest point! I am a rock star! I am going too fast down this long hill! I am going to get to my house and puke homemade applesauce! I CAN SEE THE END OF THE STREET! (Granted, that means, there's a hill, and I still have to run back down the main street, but -) I GOT THIS!!
Every. Single. Time I get cocky, it all goes to hell. I got THE sharpest, most intolerable side cramp I have had in this whole 175 days. Well, there's NO way I am letting a pathetic side cramp stop me. I continue. I got to a bit of shade at about the same time I almost fell down/into the wall providing the shade. I was a mess. I continued on. I made it to the end of the block, where I stopped, in pure screaming agony. I was one baby-sized block from the turnaround. I was PISSED!
I had run 32 minutes. 3.96K. 2.46 miles. All records.*
There was a small wall here, so I leaned on it, and did some calf stretches. I don't know what you are supposed to do to get rid of a stomach cramp, but this seemed to help. After about 30 seconds, I stomped on. I was furious. I was a seething ball of rage. I stormed to the corner, up the hill, past Tux's house, and down the next baby block.
After my last run, where my walks were 8 and 7 minutes, I realized I really need to force myself to walk only 5 minutes, like on the Couch to 5K Plan. So I would only let myself have 5 minutes.
I got to the corner of that baby block in 3 minutes, and took off running. Screw 5 minutes. I don't need it. I walked .3K/.19m.
Well, I have a long run home, and I refuse to stop. The "uphill" isn't a problem. The wind isn't a problem. My side isn't a problem - why couldn't I stay upright a few more minutes!? There were, however, a TON of people out today. I delayed my Sunday run to Monday, when there should have been fewer people out. I was wrong. Unemployment is thriving.
Completely unbelievably, I made it the rest of the way home. It took another 6.5 minutes, for a total of 41.5 minutes/4.95K/3.07m (seriously?!). I marched right up the steps. I was awesome today.
Once inside, my left knee started hurting pretty bad. I iced it for quite awhile. My right calf was sore, too. Perhaps from the random mid-run stretches? None of this kept me from taking the dog for his walk, though.
Weather: 74, Sunny, 23 mph Wind, 58% Humidity
Time: 1:30pm; Run 32, Walk 3, Run 6.5
Distance: 4.95K (3.07m)
Elevation: +89.6/-87.6/net +2 ft
5K/10K: 41:58/1:28:42
Run Time: 38.5 minutes
Distance: 4.65K (2.88m) - I walked 6% today.
5K/10K: 41:39/1:28:02
Prior to today, I had run for 30 minutes on the last day of the Couch to 5K, which covered 3.91K. I had clocked a 28 minute run since then, at 3.52K. Obviously, my 32 minute 3.96K pre-cramp run was quite exciting. 38.5 minutes/4.65K is also my new best time and distance for total just run time.
*By me. So far.
Day 172: Run of 1000 Horrors
Run for Friday, 10/22.
Since I have completely fallen apart on my route to finish a 5K, all running, I'm becoming creative with where the problem could be. I hate the smell of my current deodorant. The store didn't have the scent I preferred last time, so I've been stuck with this one for what seems like an eternity. And it is pretty much all I can smell as I swelter through a run. Today, I decided to spray some Bath & Body Works spray that my Mom gave me before my run. Perhaps if I smell something I like while I'm out there, I'll be more inclined to stay out there.
I decided to give the hilly 5K route a try today. Probably not a great idea since I just ran yesterday, but why not. I pretty well know that I can get through the first half, because there's no way I'm stopping while going DOWN the giant hill. There's another sizable hill to go up on the other side of that, and my goal was really to just get farther up it today than I did last time. This should be doable because my mp3 player is charged today, and I smell like a cucumber.
As I ran down the hill, I couldn't help but note the amount of little bugs in the air. For a mouth breather like me (at least while running), this is definitely a concern. Between all the cobwebs from the last run, and the bugs today, I'm thinking fall running is not for me and/or I need a mask to wear while running. That would be smashing.
Anyway, I made it to the back of the city park at the bottom of the Hill Gigantic. Of course, I was tired, but I wanted to get to the top of the next hill. Um, I didn't. I made it a respectable 200 feet farther than last time, which was how far it was to the next landmark, a driveway. Going uphill just wasn't working out for me, but I had achieved my goal of going farther, and I was surprised when I looked at the time and saw I had been running for 20 minutes already. Last time, it took me 19 minutes, so I'm consistent anyway. I had gone 2.67K/1.66m.
At this point, I had only run about 3 tenths of a mile farther than yesterday's run, but it felt like I had run miles and miles farther. I hoped to walk to the top of the hill, then start running for the downhill. Of course, that didn't work out. I had full-on jelly legs, and wasn't sure if I'd be running anymore.
When I got to the lake, there was a gaggle (?) of geese on the path. We have the world's biggest geese, clearly, in this area, and I was a little leery of walking past them. There were people at the picnic shelter nearby, so always the entertainer, I knew I would at least be putting on a show if they attacked me and threw me, bloody, into the lake.
I got past them, only to encounter an even larger gaggle on the other side. With no people close by, I was more intimidated walking past them, but at least I wasn't up against the lake here.
Success again. As I wound my way around the path, here completely blocked from view, I came upon, you guessed it. Another gaggle of geese. I was going to go for it once again, and as I rounded the curve in the trail to meet them, I saw one goose right in the center of the path, stone cold asleep. Standing on one leg, face buried in his back. I don't know what goose protocol is for being startled awake by a human, but based on all the other geese, who were awake, and watching me, I had a feeling there was one and I didn't want to know about it. So, risking losing a little time on my run, and more importantly, coming across a snake, I backtracked a little, then shuffled across the grass. Sleeping goose stirred, but no one came after me.
Shew. That was close.
The trail levels out a bit at this point, and I decided to run again. Not just to get the heck out of this park of giant geese, but to get away from the creeper cop car parked way back down one of the trailways. Lunch? Strategically parked? Napping? I don't know, but since my favorite phrase is "Run like you stole something," I decided to use them as motivation. Plus, I had pepper spray in my pocket, and I didn't want to be tazed to death for it. I started running near a little parking area, after 8 minutes of walking, covering about .64K/.39m.
Starting up again was unbearably hard, and in spite of having New Kids come on the mp3, I believe for the first time, I sadly did not have the Right Stuff after all, and stopped running after 5 minutes/.71K/.45m. It seemed like I covered a long ways, and I made it a wee bit into the hill that covers a couple of blocks. It's gentle, and of course, would have preferred to run it, but this was strategically a good place to walk again.
With my oh so technologically advanced shuffle mode on my mp3, mere moments later, I got to hear more NKOTB. This time it was "Step by Step," which I found amusing, and just may have been able to use to motivate me to start running again. I was at the top of the wee hill, about to start back on the long main road I run all the time. I thought I heard someone yelling, like conversationally, and I kind of glanced around. I was preparing to cross an awkward intersection that doesn't have a very good view, so if someone was yelling, I thought I maybe should pay attention. I didn't see anyone until I got across the street, and then I noticed a woman leaning out the door of the second house on the block. Sure enough, she was yelling at me.
About the same time I realized that, I saw the dog. He was on a leash, but his leash went across the sidewalk and he was laying in the grass by the road. Granted, if she hadn't yelled, I probably would have tripped over the leash before I saw the dog, but, wait, did she say he bites?!
I paused my mp3 and yelled back, "He BITES?!" No, of course not, you oxygen deprived maniac. She yelled again, "He does NOT bite. He may lick you and he'll probably follow you down the sidewalk."
So, since the geese had already thrown my time slightly, why not stop and pet the big ol' pit bull in my path. Per usual, I gave him the "Hi doggie," that all frightening dogs in my path get, and stuck my [please God don't let me lose it] hand out to him. "Doggie" apparently didn't work for the lady in the doorway, because she yelled his name which I heard as Tubs.
"Tubs?" I yelled back. "No, TUX."
Oh, of course. Because that's a normal name for a dog. Tux gave me a lick, and followed me as far as his leash went, and I carried on, shaking my head at how absurd this run was turning out.
I passed the Halloween decoration with the dismembered leg dangling from the tree, and told myself I really needed to get to running again. I didn't think I could quite make it home, and I didn't want another walk session. I walked back to the street where I originally turned off for the hills at the beginning of the run (7 minute walk/.63K/.39m), and ran the rest of the way home (4.75 minutes/.44K/.28m). I ran through a massive amount of bugs and was concerned, mostly because I didn't notice them when I was running the other direction.
It nearly killed me to get to the back of my house, and when I got to the stairs, I put my arm on the railing, and my head on it. I didn't bend over quite as much as the near faint inducing bend I did the day before. When I stood up, there was a bug smeared down my arm where my head had been. So disgusting. This is the nastiest hobby I have ever had. But at least I smelled better today.
So, now it's Monday when I'm actually posting this, and as I look back at my notes, a couple of things stand out. I didn't write down what time I ran, and I didn't write down what I had eaten. I believe it was around 12:30 when I was running, because I seem to remember thinking people at the park were on their lunch breaks. Given the hour, I probably didn't have much more than a Dew and water, and maybe some granola before the run. I did note that I was "so, so thirsty." When I got home, I took the dog for a walk, and that night I was so sore. So tired, and achey, and just miserably exhausted. Saturday had to be a rest day, but I planned to run yesterday. I decided instead to wait until today when there were fewer people out and about. I can't get a job because I refuse to run anytime when there are people around! I did spend the weekend getting back close to my proper water intake, so perhaps I won't be "so, so thirsty" when I run next. I also got out my giant book o' Shakespeare and looked for something to work on memorizing while I run. I haven't landed on anything yet, but I still think this may be the best tool for me to get through a run. I'm open to suggestions for anything, at all, to memorize.
Weather: 73, Sunny, 18mph Wind, 26% Humidity
Time: 12:30pm; Run 20, Walk 8, Run 5, Walk 7, Run 4.75 (44.75 minutes)
Distance: 5.09K (3.17m)
Elevation: +163.1/-187.4/net -24.3 ft
5K/10K: 43:54/1:32:48 - This is horrible, but better than the last time, when I walked 39% of the route.
Run Time: 29.75 minutes
Distance: 3.82K (2.39m) - As annoyed as I am that I can't run farther without walking, the cumulative distance makes me quite happy. Looking over my spreadsheet, I am going farther, if not the way I want to. For this trip, I walked about 25% of the distance.
5K/10K: 39:48/1:24:07
Since I have completely fallen apart on my route to finish a 5K, all running, I'm becoming creative with where the problem could be. I hate the smell of my current deodorant. The store didn't have the scent I preferred last time, so I've been stuck with this one for what seems like an eternity. And it is pretty much all I can smell as I swelter through a run. Today, I decided to spray some Bath & Body Works spray that my Mom gave me before my run. Perhaps if I smell something I like while I'm out there, I'll be more inclined to stay out there.
I decided to give the hilly 5K route a try today. Probably not a great idea since I just ran yesterday, but why not. I pretty well know that I can get through the first half, because there's no way I'm stopping while going DOWN the giant hill. There's another sizable hill to go up on the other side of that, and my goal was really to just get farther up it today than I did last time. This should be doable because my mp3 player is charged today, and I smell like a cucumber.
As I ran down the hill, I couldn't help but note the amount of little bugs in the air. For a mouth breather like me (at least while running), this is definitely a concern. Between all the cobwebs from the last run, and the bugs today, I'm thinking fall running is not for me and/or I need a mask to wear while running. That would be smashing.
Anyway, I made it to the back of the city park at the bottom of the Hill Gigantic. Of course, I was tired, but I wanted to get to the top of the next hill. Um, I didn't. I made it a respectable 200 feet farther than last time, which was how far it was to the next landmark, a driveway. Going uphill just wasn't working out for me, but I had achieved my goal of going farther, and I was surprised when I looked at the time and saw I had been running for 20 minutes already. Last time, it took me 19 minutes, so I'm consistent anyway. I had gone 2.67K/1.66m.
At this point, I had only run about 3 tenths of a mile farther than yesterday's run, but it felt like I had run miles and miles farther. I hoped to walk to the top of the hill, then start running for the downhill. Of course, that didn't work out. I had full-on jelly legs, and wasn't sure if I'd be running anymore.
When I got to the lake, there was a gaggle (?) of geese on the path. We have the world's biggest geese, clearly, in this area, and I was a little leery of walking past them. There were people at the picnic shelter nearby, so always the entertainer, I knew I would at least be putting on a show if they attacked me and threw me, bloody, into the lake.
I got past them, only to encounter an even larger gaggle on the other side. With no people close by, I was more intimidated walking past them, but at least I wasn't up against the lake here.
Success again. As I wound my way around the path, here completely blocked from view, I came upon, you guessed it. Another gaggle of geese. I was going to go for it once again, and as I rounded the curve in the trail to meet them, I saw one goose right in the center of the path, stone cold asleep. Standing on one leg, face buried in his back. I don't know what goose protocol is for being startled awake by a human, but based on all the other geese, who were awake, and watching me, I had a feeling there was one and I didn't want to know about it. So, risking losing a little time on my run, and more importantly, coming across a snake, I backtracked a little, then shuffled across the grass. Sleeping goose stirred, but no one came after me.
Shew. That was close.
The trail levels out a bit at this point, and I decided to run again. Not just to get the heck out of this park of giant geese, but to get away from the creeper cop car parked way back down one of the trailways. Lunch? Strategically parked? Napping? I don't know, but since my favorite phrase is "Run like you stole something," I decided to use them as motivation. Plus, I had pepper spray in my pocket, and I didn't want to be tazed to death for it. I started running near a little parking area, after 8 minutes of walking, covering about .64K/.39m.
Starting up again was unbearably hard, and in spite of having New Kids come on the mp3, I believe for the first time, I sadly did not have the Right Stuff after all, and stopped running after 5 minutes/.71K/.45m. It seemed like I covered a long ways, and I made it a wee bit into the hill that covers a couple of blocks. It's gentle, and of course, would have preferred to run it, but this was strategically a good place to walk again.
With my oh so technologically advanced shuffle mode on my mp3, mere moments later, I got to hear more NKOTB. This time it was "Step by Step," which I found amusing, and just may have been able to use to motivate me to start running again. I was at the top of the wee hill, about to start back on the long main road I run all the time. I thought I heard someone yelling, like conversationally, and I kind of glanced around. I was preparing to cross an awkward intersection that doesn't have a very good view, so if someone was yelling, I thought I maybe should pay attention. I didn't see anyone until I got across the street, and then I noticed a woman leaning out the door of the second house on the block. Sure enough, she was yelling at me.
About the same time I realized that, I saw the dog. He was on a leash, but his leash went across the sidewalk and he was laying in the grass by the road. Granted, if she hadn't yelled, I probably would have tripped over the leash before I saw the dog, but, wait, did she say he bites?!
I paused my mp3 and yelled back, "He BITES?!" No, of course not, you oxygen deprived maniac. She yelled again, "He does NOT bite. He may lick you and he'll probably follow you down the sidewalk."
So, since the geese had already thrown my time slightly, why not stop and pet the big ol' pit bull in my path. Per usual, I gave him the "Hi doggie," that all frightening dogs in my path get, and stuck my [please God don't let me lose it] hand out to him. "Doggie" apparently didn't work for the lady in the doorway, because she yelled his name which I heard as Tubs.
"Tubs?" I yelled back. "No, TUX."
Oh, of course. Because that's a normal name for a dog. Tux gave me a lick, and followed me as far as his leash went, and I carried on, shaking my head at how absurd this run was turning out.
I passed the Halloween decoration with the dismembered leg dangling from the tree, and told myself I really needed to get to running again. I didn't think I could quite make it home, and I didn't want another walk session. I walked back to the street where I originally turned off for the hills at the beginning of the run (7 minute walk/.63K/.39m), and ran the rest of the way home (4.75 minutes/.44K/.28m). I ran through a massive amount of bugs and was concerned, mostly because I didn't notice them when I was running the other direction.
It nearly killed me to get to the back of my house, and when I got to the stairs, I put my arm on the railing, and my head on it. I didn't bend over quite as much as the near faint inducing bend I did the day before. When I stood up, there was a bug smeared down my arm where my head had been. So disgusting. This is the nastiest hobby I have ever had. But at least I smelled better today.
So, now it's Monday when I'm actually posting this, and as I look back at my notes, a couple of things stand out. I didn't write down what time I ran, and I didn't write down what I had eaten. I believe it was around 12:30 when I was running, because I seem to remember thinking people at the park were on their lunch breaks. Given the hour, I probably didn't have much more than a Dew and water, and maybe some granola before the run. I did note that I was "so, so thirsty." When I got home, I took the dog for a walk, and that night I was so sore. So tired, and achey, and just miserably exhausted. Saturday had to be a rest day, but I planned to run yesterday. I decided instead to wait until today when there were fewer people out and about. I can't get a job because I refuse to run anytime when there are people around! I did spend the weekend getting back close to my proper water intake, so perhaps I won't be "so, so thirsty" when I run next. I also got out my giant book o' Shakespeare and looked for something to work on memorizing while I run. I haven't landed on anything yet, but I still think this may be the best tool for me to get through a run. I'm open to suggestions for anything, at all, to memorize.
Weather: 73, Sunny, 18mph Wind, 26% Humidity
Time: 12:30pm; Run 20, Walk 8, Run 5, Walk 7, Run 4.75 (44.75 minutes)
Distance: 5.09K (3.17m)
Elevation: +163.1/-187.4/net -24.3 ft
5K/10K: 43:54/1:32:48 - This is horrible, but better than the last time, when I walked 39% of the route.
Run Time: 29.75 minutes
Distance: 3.82K (2.39m) - As annoyed as I am that I can't run farther without walking, the cumulative distance makes me quite happy. Looking over my spreadsheet, I am going farther, if not the way I want to. For this trip, I walked about 25% of the distance.
5K/10K: 39:48/1:24:07
Saturday, October 23, 2010
Day 171: Oh, am I supposed to be running still?
Well, I clearly did not write a blog on water on the 15th. We were travelling that day, and I just didn't get to it. I did pack my running gear for our weekend trip, but I didn't get to that either. I was mildly horrified to look at my spreadsheet on Thursday, the 21st, and see how long it had been since I had run. So, when I set out, I really didn't know how far I would make it.
Plus, Thursday was kind of a mess. I got up, had a Dew, took a nap, had some water and granola. For a late afternoon run, that probably wasn't enough food, and overall, I haven't been drinking enough water lately. I was definitely thirsty when I set out, and throughout the run.
When I left, I set out on the hilly 5K route, looping back around my house to start with. Something felt weird with my shoe, and as I ran on, it felt like something was stuck in the tread, but I couldn't seem to knock it loose. Then, it felt like I was squishing something on the side of my shoe, so I stopped and took a look - a chunk of tread was flapping off. I ripped it off, and renewed my belief that it's time for new shoes, even though I just read that it's usually 300-400 miles when you should replace and I'm only around 150.
As I dodged/ran into massive cobwebs every few steps, I was quickly realizing the 5K was out of the question. My breath held up, and I felt pretty light on my feet, but I was happy I could run at all, I didn't feel the need to push it this time.
So, now, without a route in mind, I just continued on down the main road to the end, turned around and headed back. I was having massive all over stomach cramps, but it wasn't the type I usually get, which prevent me from breathing, so I just kept on.
This town puts out an amazing amount of Halloween decorations. I mean, really, a lot of decorations. I wonder if some of the cobwebs I was plowing through were actually fake? Sadly, probably not.
As I headed back toward the house, I tried to decide if I could go farther. I was considering at least running past the house to the end of the block, and back, but the "back" would be uphill. Kind of everything is uphill from my house, so I decided to just call it done. It was only 17 minutes, although I was happy with that, I wished it was longer. I wasn't sure of the distance I had gone, but I was pretty happy with it. When I mapped it out to 2.22K, I was really happy with it. I really felt like I could have gone longer today - I wasn't totally wiped out like normal.
That being said, when I got to my back steps, I was too tired to get my key out of its little pouch, and too tired to climb the 5-6 steps into the house. I just kind of hung on the steps until when I finally stood upright I nearly passed out. Maybe I was more tired than I realized.
Also, I was really sore when I went to bed and through the night. Ouch. Haven't gotten sore from a run in awhile.
Weather: 69, Sunny, 4 mph breeze, 16% Humidity
Time: 3pm; Run 17 minutes
Distance: 2.22K (1.38m)
Elevation: +35.2/-36/net -.8 ft
5K/10K: 40:52/1:26:23
Plus, Thursday was kind of a mess. I got up, had a Dew, took a nap, had some water and granola. For a late afternoon run, that probably wasn't enough food, and overall, I haven't been drinking enough water lately. I was definitely thirsty when I set out, and throughout the run.
When I left, I set out on the hilly 5K route, looping back around my house to start with. Something felt weird with my shoe, and as I ran on, it felt like something was stuck in the tread, but I couldn't seem to knock it loose. Then, it felt like I was squishing something on the side of my shoe, so I stopped and took a look - a chunk of tread was flapping off. I ripped it off, and renewed my belief that it's time for new shoes, even though I just read that it's usually 300-400 miles when you should replace and I'm only around 150.
As I dodged/ran into massive cobwebs every few steps, I was quickly realizing the 5K was out of the question. My breath held up, and I felt pretty light on my feet, but I was happy I could run at all, I didn't feel the need to push it this time.
So, now, without a route in mind, I just continued on down the main road to the end, turned around and headed back. I was having massive all over stomach cramps, but it wasn't the type I usually get, which prevent me from breathing, so I just kept on.
This town puts out an amazing amount of Halloween decorations. I mean, really, a lot of decorations. I wonder if some of the cobwebs I was plowing through were actually fake? Sadly, probably not.
As I headed back toward the house, I tried to decide if I could go farther. I was considering at least running past the house to the end of the block, and back, but the "back" would be uphill. Kind of everything is uphill from my house, so I decided to just call it done. It was only 17 minutes, although I was happy with that, I wished it was longer. I wasn't sure of the distance I had gone, but I was pretty happy with it. When I mapped it out to 2.22K, I was really happy with it. I really felt like I could have gone longer today - I wasn't totally wiped out like normal.
That being said, when I got to my back steps, I was too tired to get my key out of its little pouch, and too tired to climb the 5-6 steps into the house. I just kind of hung on the steps until when I finally stood upright I nearly passed out. Maybe I was more tired than I realized.
Also, I was really sore when I went to bed and through the night. Ouch. Haven't gotten sore from a run in awhile.
Weather: 69, Sunny, 4 mph breeze, 16% Humidity
Time: 3pm; Run 17 minutes
Distance: 2.22K (1.38m)
Elevation: +35.2/-36/net -.8 ft
5K/10K: 40:52/1:26:23
Sunday, October 10, 2010
Blog Action Day
I recently heard about Blog Action Day...I think I may have heard about it last year, too, but since I wasn't blogging, I'm sure it didn't stick.
Anyway, the idea is that you register your blog, then, on October 15th, you blog about the assigned topic. This year the topic is Water. This brings all these different viewpoints on the subject, and hopes to bring awareness to the subject.
I think it's a cool idea. I am obsessed with water. Drinking it, saving it, having clean water, even though so many people don't. Bitching about what the meat industry does to harm the world's water supply. Worrying about what I put down the drain. I'm also obsessed, when in LA, with the stamps above the sewers that say "Drains to Ocean" instead of "Drains to some Hillbilly Creek" like all our local sewers say. Of course, in the end it all drains to the ocean, from everywhere.
OK, today is not the 15th, so I'll stop. The idea is you can blog whatever you want on Water, but there are some ideas on the site, http://blogactionday.change.org/ . I don't think I am going to register my blog, but I do think (if I remember), that I'll put down some thoughts on water on Friday anyway.
It's easy and free if you are interested in registering your blog.
Anyway, the idea is that you register your blog, then, on October 15th, you blog about the assigned topic. This year the topic is Water. This brings all these different viewpoints on the subject, and hopes to bring awareness to the subject.
I think it's a cool idea. I am obsessed with water. Drinking it, saving it, having clean water, even though so many people don't. Bitching about what the meat industry does to harm the world's water supply. Worrying about what I put down the drain. I'm also obsessed, when in LA, with the stamps above the sewers that say "Drains to Ocean" instead of "Drains to some Hillbilly Creek" like all our local sewers say. Of course, in the end it all drains to the ocean, from everywhere.
OK, today is not the 15th, so I'll stop. The idea is you can blog whatever you want on Water, but there are some ideas on the site, http://blogactionday.change.org/ . I don't think I am going to register my blog, but I do think (if I remember), that I'll put down some thoughts on water on Friday anyway.
It's easy and free if you are interested in registering your blog.
Day 156: Route 5K New Epic An
Post for run on Wednesday 10/6.
Well, today I tried to setup the perfect run. I decided to run my new 5K route in the opposite direction, so the monster hill would be taken going down. I started this route running away from my house (well, obviously), but then circling back past it, and then way, way farther away. The little jog at the beginning was necessary to get the full 5K in, and I knew I would be safe going past the house right at the start of the run. So I even had the foresight to KEEP that jog at the beginning of my run, knowing running past the house when I have less than a mile to go, wasn't going to happen. I also changed the street that I would crossover on, from the main road to the hilly street. There has been something very, very dead on the street I crossed on for awhile. I chose that street originally because it was before a really steep part of the hill. However, running backwards hit that steep part going down, so it was perfect to change the crossover street. I also wore my shorts with pockets, so I could enjoy having pepper spray while in the park. And finally, I wore some super thick socks to protect my feet bottoms.
Sounds like I was all set for a perfect run.
I guess I was pretty tired today. I didn't help by only eating toast, Dew, a dessert bar, and water before my run. I also decided to curl up on the floor with the dog, on his pillow, under a Snuggi, and take a nice long nap before the run.
I should have just stuck with the napping today.
I turned on my mp3 player, and it was actually dead. So I gave it a charge for about 4 minutes. I didn't know how far that would get me, but I didn't realize it was dead until I was all stretched and ready to go, and I didn't want to wait around. I was actually concerned about my phone going dead today.
So, I set off, with the mp3 on random, afraid to skip over any songs that I didn't want to hear, because of wasting battery power. I have an addiction to pushing buttons while I am running. I don't do it all the time, and it's usually not until I am struggling, then I go nuts. I repeatedly push buttons on the phone, I skip songs just to push buttons. It's bizarre. Now I am unable to push buttons because I'm afraid of both going dead.
It seemed that the wind was in my face no matter which way I was going. Then the mp3 died before I got to the hills. Sigh.
Well, as I was taught to always walk/run on the side of the road where you are facing oncoming traffic, I crossed near the peak of the hill, where the sidewalk ends, if you will. Turns out, on that side of the street, there was sidewalk for quite a ways farther than the other side. If I hadn't been struggling all the way up that monster hill going the other way, maybe I would have noticed and gotten out of the street earlier. Oops.
As I neared the bottom, I was able to see just how far I had run up the hill last time. A pretty impressive distance, really. I was pretty tired at this point, and felt like I had run at a pretty good clip, so I wasn't sure how far into the park I would make it. After all, I had to go uphill as soon as I got in.
I made it, well, not too far. This stretch had no shade, the sun was beating down, I had those ridiculous thick socks on, and what happened to the wind!? I was suddenly very hot, so I walked when I got past the maintenance building, my landmark. (19 minutes, 2.61K, 1.62m.)
And walked.
I could not catch my breath. I thought about just walking the rest of the way home. I was happy with my initial burst, and I was really tired.
I made it up the hill, down the next hill, to the lake. Here I will run, even though I still don't feel so great. (4 minutes of walking, .35K, .22m.) I made it across the lake, even though I was a little close and at one point seriously thought I was going to fall in. On the other side, the trail goes up, and it starts off steep. I did not make it far, before I gave in. (A whopping 1 minute run, .14K, .09m.)
Well, that's that, I am walking the rest of the way home. I don't know why, but the first time I run a route seems to be the best. Too bad this town sucks, and it's hard to find a decent route that I like. Too many sex offenders, too many broken sidewalks, too many missing sidewalks, too many hills, too many half street dead ends. Sigh. Maybe after tackling this, I should go back to my first, flat route. It seems easy by comparison. I was starting to worry I was never going to get home due to sheer exhaustion.
I walked all the way back up the main street, until I got to the original crossover street, and decided to give it one more burst home. This is where I ran it out from last time. (Walked 17 minutes, 1.44K, .89m.) So I take off, bottoms of my feet suddenly killing me in spite of the super hot thick socks. I made it to my street. Sigh. (2 minute run, .32K, .2m.) I walked the last couple of blocks home. (2 minutes, .19K, .12m.) I went ahead and tracked the whole time even though I was walking, because I wanted the distance to be 5K. The whole time I really only wanted to count the first part of the run.
I ended up running 3.07K of 5.05K (1.91m of 3.14m). It took me 45 minutes, 22 of which were run. Distance-wise, I walked about 39%.
If I just counted the initial run, I went 2.61K (1.62m) in 19 minutes. The elevation change was +78.7/-143.5/net -64.7 ft. The 5K/10K predictor would be 38:21/1:21:04. I decided to record the full 5.05K number in my stats, since I did try, a little, after the initial burst.
My right knee was a little sore as the day wore on, but it went away. I've been lucky lately with not having things nag on and on like at first.
Weather: 78, Sunny, 13 mph wind, 34% Humidity
Time: 2:30p; Run 19, Walk 4, Run 1, Walk 17, Run 2, Walk 2
Distance: 5.05K (3.14m)
Elevation: +254.5/-253.7/net .8 ft
5K/10K: 44:32/1:34:07
Run Time: 22 minutes
Distance: 3.07K (1.91m)
5K/10K: 37:16/1:18:46
P.S. Sorry for the massive delay on blogging lately. It's a real pain in the ass to put the numbers together for these stupid run, walk, run, walk, run, walks that I insist on of late. I hate pulling the numbers, I hate blogging it. I hate that I can't just run the whole thing. I also hate going for another run before I've done the blogging. However, it doesn't stop me. I wanted to run Friday, but decided to wait till Saturday morning, when I enjoy running. And didn't. Maybe I'll get one in today, 10-10-10, to mark both the Chicago Marathon, and the Route 66 Marathon that runs through MO, KS, and OK, which I think is super cool. But...it's not looking good. At least I got this blog in, so that's one excuse out of the way.
Well, today I tried to setup the perfect run. I decided to run my new 5K route in the opposite direction, so the monster hill would be taken going down. I started this route running away from my house (well, obviously), but then circling back past it, and then way, way farther away. The little jog at the beginning was necessary to get the full 5K in, and I knew I would be safe going past the house right at the start of the run. So I even had the foresight to KEEP that jog at the beginning of my run, knowing running past the house when I have less than a mile to go, wasn't going to happen. I also changed the street that I would crossover on, from the main road to the hilly street. There has been something very, very dead on the street I crossed on for awhile. I chose that street originally because it was before a really steep part of the hill. However, running backwards hit that steep part going down, so it was perfect to change the crossover street. I also wore my shorts with pockets, so I could enjoy having pepper spray while in the park. And finally, I wore some super thick socks to protect my feet bottoms.
Sounds like I was all set for a perfect run.
I guess I was pretty tired today. I didn't help by only eating toast, Dew, a dessert bar, and water before my run. I also decided to curl up on the floor with the dog, on his pillow, under a Snuggi, and take a nice long nap before the run.
I should have just stuck with the napping today.
I turned on my mp3 player, and it was actually dead. So I gave it a charge for about 4 minutes. I didn't know how far that would get me, but I didn't realize it was dead until I was all stretched and ready to go, and I didn't want to wait around. I was actually concerned about my phone going dead today.
So, I set off, with the mp3 on random, afraid to skip over any songs that I didn't want to hear, because of wasting battery power. I have an addiction to pushing buttons while I am running. I don't do it all the time, and it's usually not until I am struggling, then I go nuts. I repeatedly push buttons on the phone, I skip songs just to push buttons. It's bizarre. Now I am unable to push buttons because I'm afraid of both going dead.
It seemed that the wind was in my face no matter which way I was going. Then the mp3 died before I got to the hills. Sigh.
Well, as I was taught to always walk/run on the side of the road where you are facing oncoming traffic, I crossed near the peak of the hill, where the sidewalk ends, if you will. Turns out, on that side of the street, there was sidewalk for quite a ways farther than the other side. If I hadn't been struggling all the way up that monster hill going the other way, maybe I would have noticed and gotten out of the street earlier. Oops.
As I neared the bottom, I was able to see just how far I had run up the hill last time. A pretty impressive distance, really. I was pretty tired at this point, and felt like I had run at a pretty good clip, so I wasn't sure how far into the park I would make it. After all, I had to go uphill as soon as I got in.
I made it, well, not too far. This stretch had no shade, the sun was beating down, I had those ridiculous thick socks on, and what happened to the wind!? I was suddenly very hot, so I walked when I got past the maintenance building, my landmark. (19 minutes, 2.61K, 1.62m.)
And walked.
I could not catch my breath. I thought about just walking the rest of the way home. I was happy with my initial burst, and I was really tired.
I made it up the hill, down the next hill, to the lake. Here I will run, even though I still don't feel so great. (4 minutes of walking, .35K, .22m.) I made it across the lake, even though I was a little close and at one point seriously thought I was going to fall in. On the other side, the trail goes up, and it starts off steep. I did not make it far, before I gave in. (A whopping 1 minute run, .14K, .09m.)
Well, that's that, I am walking the rest of the way home. I don't know why, but the first time I run a route seems to be the best. Too bad this town sucks, and it's hard to find a decent route that I like. Too many sex offenders, too many broken sidewalks, too many missing sidewalks, too many hills, too many half street dead ends. Sigh. Maybe after tackling this, I should go back to my first, flat route. It seems easy by comparison. I was starting to worry I was never going to get home due to sheer exhaustion.
I walked all the way back up the main street, until I got to the original crossover street, and decided to give it one more burst home. This is where I ran it out from last time. (Walked 17 minutes, 1.44K, .89m.) So I take off, bottoms of my feet suddenly killing me in spite of the super hot thick socks. I made it to my street. Sigh. (2 minute run, .32K, .2m.) I walked the last couple of blocks home. (2 minutes, .19K, .12m.) I went ahead and tracked the whole time even though I was walking, because I wanted the distance to be 5K. The whole time I really only wanted to count the first part of the run.
I ended up running 3.07K of 5.05K (1.91m of 3.14m). It took me 45 minutes, 22 of which were run. Distance-wise, I walked about 39%.
If I just counted the initial run, I went 2.61K (1.62m) in 19 minutes. The elevation change was +78.7/-143.5/net -64.7 ft. The 5K/10K predictor would be 38:21/1:21:04. I decided to record the full 5.05K number in my stats, since I did try, a little, after the initial burst.
My right knee was a little sore as the day wore on, but it went away. I've been lucky lately with not having things nag on and on like at first.
Weather: 78, Sunny, 13 mph wind, 34% Humidity
Time: 2:30p; Run 19, Walk 4, Run 1, Walk 17, Run 2, Walk 2
Distance: 5.05K (3.14m)
Elevation: +254.5/-253.7/net .8 ft
5K/10K: 44:32/1:34:07
Run Time: 22 minutes
Distance: 3.07K (1.91m)
5K/10K: 37:16/1:18:46
P.S. Sorry for the massive delay on blogging lately. It's a real pain in the ass to put the numbers together for these stupid run, walk, run, walk, run, walks that I insist on of late. I hate pulling the numbers, I hate blogging it. I hate that I can't just run the whole thing. I also hate going for another run before I've done the blogging. However, it doesn't stop me. I wanted to run Friday, but decided to wait till Saturday morning, when I enjoy running. And didn't. Maybe I'll get one in today, 10-10-10, to mark both the Chicago Marathon, and the Route 66 Marathon that runs through MO, KS, and OK, which I think is super cool. But...it's not looking good. At least I got this blog in, so that's one excuse out of the way.
Monday, October 4, 2010
Day 154: An Epic New 5K Route
Last night I spent quite a bit of time routing a new 5K. After talking with one of my friends, and spending quite a bit of time thinking about it, I am, as I stated in my last post, certain that I have been running exceptionally short distances lately because the temptation to stop in the middle of my Figure 8, at my house, is frakking overwhelming.
So I worked out a new route, one slightly over 5K so I wouldn't have any more of this 4.9K crap. A loop, so I knew I could make it to the furthest point, then I may as well keep running, because I'm headed home now.
I decided to run through our nearby park, which has lovely exercise trails. I've wanted to run in the park for awhile, but it is too close to drive to and there is a decent sized hill with no sidewalks to deal with if I want to run to it. It's also hard to use google to measure a route in the park because of the, well, trees blocking the paths on the satellite images. I finally mapped out part of the trail, and then a route home.
Oh, the route home. This would take me up the street I run/walk on regularly (at least prior to my current 5K route), but, of course, farther away from where I usually run. I also don't often have reason to drive down this street, so when I noticed that the google images weren't stitched together correctly, I really couldn't gauge how far off the stitching is. Also, I know this road is hilly. This is the road that had my first significant hills that I fought for weeks (months?) before finally conquering, and then went straight back to avoiding. I felt like farther down the road the hills were more significant. I worried about sidewalks. Enter Google. First, it looks like on images that there are sidewalks. Good. I looked briefly at the elevation, but I really didn't let it sink in. This was the route I wanted to go, so it would be what it be. Besides, the worst part of the hills were going to be between 3 and 4 K, so presumably I would already be walking anyway.
Today started out like any other day lately. Dew. Bagel. Water. Stomachache. Struggling to get the right outfit together for the weather. I went with the same outfit as last time - capri pants, tank top, long sleeve shirt, stocking cap. It was perfect for the last run. Today was 5 degrees warmer, and no wind, compared to the tornadic gusts I faced last time. When I set out, it was cool, but I could tell I was significantly overdressed. I quickly dropped everything and tossed the stocking cap and long sleeve tee back over our fence. Turns out, this was now the perfect outfit for the weather.
Sigh. However, I was having a significant wardrobe malfunction. My pants are drawstring and that drawstring is important to the pants staying in place. I had them tied, but apparently not tight enough. Part of the problem also was that I have a little pouch for my id and key that I usually tuck in my waistband. When the waistband won't stay up, this causes additional problems. So I spent the first K or better hitching my pants up. I am sure I looked like an ass. Thankfully, no one had to look at my ass. At one point I flipped my mp3 from my jazz album to the mic. I have no idea how I did that. But just what I have ALWAYS wanted - a recording of my panting while I run. Maybe I'll upload it later. Ugh. I knew I was going to have to stop and fix it eventually but I didn't want to stop my run! Everything was okay once I finally fixed it, but I had to carry my little pouch for the whole run today, which was annoying.
I also had to stop for traffic when I got to the end of the main street, but just briefly. Once down the hill at the end of the main street, I was headed to all new territory. And the hill that leads to the park. I felt okay, and the hill wasn't bad. Traffic got over, and almost the whole way had a nice flat grass area I could step off onto when cars were coming.
Once I got into the park I was a little dismayed by the desolateness of it all. There were a few people around, but not enough to feel safe. I definitely wished I was packing my pepper spray, although I surely would have sprayed myself while messing with my pants earlier.
After entering the park, it was all downhill until I got to the lake, which was much needed. The downhill, not the lake. The lake actually made me feel the likelihood of seeing a snake today was at its peak. I decided I would stop when I got to the bottom of the hill because I thought it was a pretty sharp hill on the other side of the lake and I would just walk it all. This was mostly determined by the fact that my breathing had been replaced with grunting as my entire stomach was clenched up in a cramp.
I lived to see the lake, which was 19 minutes into my run, and 2.59K (1.61m). I was quite happy that I made it that far before walking. It only took a minute to cross the lake (.09K/.06m), and the hill wasn't that terrible, so I went ahead and ran up it. Ah yes, leave it to me to walk the flat part and run uphill.
Now I have another long downhill. I'm dreading the bottom of this hill, because it is where I will turn and head for home. This is where it's going to get rough. This is the 3rd K.
And, as predicted, I really was quite tired by this point. I was really surprised I was still running at all, with only one tiny walk.
I rounded the corner and the tallest hill I could imagine stood before me. I looked at the elevation profile again when I got home. It was 70 ft, over about .4K/.25m. Um, remember the hill on the RNBNBBQ10K route I feared because it's painful to walk? It's a 47.4 ft hill over .35K/.21m. I was never very good at algebra (or geometry or wherever we woulda learned this math), but I think this local hill was more brutal. I ran to the first intersection. It took me a long time, and my goal was strictly to have an intersection for measuring on the map, but it shaved about 10 feet off the hill. At this point, my total time was 25 minutes, and distance was 3.23K (2.01m).
Oh, and did I mention? No bloody sidewalks. Again, there was room for me to get over onto the grass when cars came, and it is a pretty wide road for most of the hill part. I just prefer to not be in the road.
As I panted up the hill, I saw a Mountain Dew can in the gutter, taunting me. Never more than at that moment, did a Dew sound so wonderful.
I finally got to the top of the hill. It leveled off slightly, but overall, I still had some more uphill before this ended. It just wasn't as severe as that first part. So, I was keeping an eye on my time so I would have an intersection I could start at, and a time to be able to remember. I finally started running at 29 minutes (so easy to remember), and 3.62K/2.25m.
Just a couple of blocks past there, I finally got back on a sidewalk, much to my relief. I also FINALLY made it back to the street where I usually turn around at, which means, dadadummm...my hills. Ah, how puny they look after the mountain I just went up. The downhill, of course was fine.
I was getting tired though, and didn't think I would make it back up the hill. This street runs straight back to the street I live on, but to make the route long enough, I had to cut over a couple of blocks to the main road, and then go back down my street. The street I chose to cut over on is the street that is before the sharpest part of this hill. I have run that sharp part many times, but not after running the rest of the hill. That part of the route was very strategically planned, and my original goal was to get to that street before I walked.
The street before it though looked like it was going to be where I stopped. It was too steep for the last section, I was too tired.
But lo and behold, I got to that street, and kept moving right along. I made it to the street I was turning on. I even made it a little ways down the street. I thought it would be flat here, but it actually was a little uphill, and I decided I had to walk again. I had made it 34 minutes, 4.36K/2.71m.
I was a bit woozy walking down this street. I haven't really been getting dizzy on runs, but I was just exhausted. I couldn't believe I'd been out there for 35 minutes. I knew I was close to home, and had covered a good distance. At the end of the 2 blocks, when I was about to turn back on the main road, I took a DEEP breath. It hurt like hell, but I needed air. At the 37 minute, 4.56K/2.84m mark, I took off for the final stretch. I was sure I would run it out...until I actually started running. I was so done, I was very worried that I wouldn't make it all the way home.
When I set this route, 5K actually hit just before my next door neighbor's house. I wanted to run to my alley, just to give it a little extra. I really wanted to run all the way to my back door. But I knew I would stop at my neighbor's. Somehow, running down the street opposite of the mini pinscher, I made it all the way to my house, and up the alley to the backdoor. 42 minutes, 5.07K, 3.15 miles.
I was sad I finished over 40 minutes, but I still beat my original goal of 45 minutes. It didn't seem like I had been out there that long at all. Overall, my breathing was pretty good today, which has probably been my #1 struggle. My throat wasn't burning, which was a problem on my first longer runs. The loop route definitely helped me, because when I got tired enough to walk for the first time, I was at the back of the loop in the park. It would have been right in the middle of the Figure 8 and I would have come on home on my other route.
The bottoms of my feet had been burning for awhile. I did not wear the proper socks for this at all. It took me a few minutes to tackle getting my feet, which felt like balloons, out of the shoes. Pulled the socks off, and there was just skin flapping everywhere. Ah, blisters. The sign of a nice long excruciating run.
Later in the day, my left achilles started hurting, and I had a headache. I doubt the headache was associated with the run, as I have been getting them a lot lately. Tuesday morning update: the achilles seems better/not So sore so far today, yay!
A couple of other running related stories before I get to my numbers breakdown...
In Australia, there was a race on Saturday called the Stiletto Run. The story I read did not include a distance, but it is what you would expect. A race, where the participants run in heels. Not recommended for the health of your legs, but Friends, a race I could finally win. I guarantee I could outrun just about anyone in a pair of well fitting heels. I have probably done more running in heels than in my sneakers. For reals, sign me up. Prize money is $5,000. That'll take care of the airfare and at least half of my Foster's budget.
Also, Husband and I have been watching a new legal tv show called "The Defenders." The one we watched after my run was about a woman who hit a runner. Granted, the runner was running at night, in all black, in the road. I haven't run at night, yet, although it's getting darker earlier and I fear it may be coming. I most certainly will not be running this route at night. I'm not sure, besides the hills, that it is worth running again at all for the lack of sidewalks throughout. It's unfortunate, because I liked the route.
I may give it one more try, and run it the opposite direction. I thought about that when I mapped it, but I thought the hills at the beginning would wear me out for the rest of the route. And they may, but that big hill is gonna be a whole lot easier going the other way!
Weather: 62, Sunny, 1 mph (it was actually quite a bit gustier than this), 36% Humidity
Time: 1p; Run 19, Walk 1, Run 5, Walk 4, Run 5, Walk 3, Run 5
Distance: 5.07K (3.15m)
Elevation: (Brace yourself) +247.6/-248.8/net -1.2 ft -- Compared to my old 5K route: +86.6/-88.8/net -2.2 ft
5K/10K: 41:23/1:27:28
Run Time: 34 minutes
Distance: 4.39K (2.72m) -- I believe I walked 13.65% of the total -- Compared to about 9% the last time I completed 5K
5K/10K: 39:08/1:22:44
So I worked out a new route, one slightly over 5K so I wouldn't have any more of this 4.9K crap. A loop, so I knew I could make it to the furthest point, then I may as well keep running, because I'm headed home now.
I decided to run through our nearby park, which has lovely exercise trails. I've wanted to run in the park for awhile, but it is too close to drive to and there is a decent sized hill with no sidewalks to deal with if I want to run to it. It's also hard to use google to measure a route in the park because of the, well, trees blocking the paths on the satellite images. I finally mapped out part of the trail, and then a route home.
Oh, the route home. This would take me up the street I run/walk on regularly (at least prior to my current 5K route), but, of course, farther away from where I usually run. I also don't often have reason to drive down this street, so when I noticed that the google images weren't stitched together correctly, I really couldn't gauge how far off the stitching is. Also, I know this road is hilly. This is the road that had my first significant hills that I fought for weeks (months?) before finally conquering, and then went straight back to avoiding. I felt like farther down the road the hills were more significant. I worried about sidewalks. Enter Google. First, it looks like on images that there are sidewalks. Good. I looked briefly at the elevation, but I really didn't let it sink in. This was the route I wanted to go, so it would be what it be. Besides, the worst part of the hills were going to be between 3 and 4 K, so presumably I would already be walking anyway.
Today started out like any other day lately. Dew. Bagel. Water. Stomachache. Struggling to get the right outfit together for the weather. I went with the same outfit as last time - capri pants, tank top, long sleeve shirt, stocking cap. It was perfect for the last run. Today was 5 degrees warmer, and no wind, compared to the tornadic gusts I faced last time. When I set out, it was cool, but I could tell I was significantly overdressed. I quickly dropped everything and tossed the stocking cap and long sleeve tee back over our fence. Turns out, this was now the perfect outfit for the weather.
Sigh. However, I was having a significant wardrobe malfunction. My pants are drawstring and that drawstring is important to the pants staying in place. I had them tied, but apparently not tight enough. Part of the problem also was that I have a little pouch for my id and key that I usually tuck in my waistband. When the waistband won't stay up, this causes additional problems. So I spent the first K or better hitching my pants up. I am sure I looked like an ass. Thankfully, no one had to look at my ass. At one point I flipped my mp3 from my jazz album to the mic. I have no idea how I did that. But just what I have ALWAYS wanted - a recording of my panting while I run. Maybe I'll upload it later. Ugh. I knew I was going to have to stop and fix it eventually but I didn't want to stop my run! Everything was okay once I finally fixed it, but I had to carry my little pouch for the whole run today, which was annoying.
I also had to stop for traffic when I got to the end of the main street, but just briefly. Once down the hill at the end of the main street, I was headed to all new territory. And the hill that leads to the park. I felt okay, and the hill wasn't bad. Traffic got over, and almost the whole way had a nice flat grass area I could step off onto when cars were coming.
Once I got into the park I was a little dismayed by the desolateness of it all. There were a few people around, but not enough to feel safe. I definitely wished I was packing my pepper spray, although I surely would have sprayed myself while messing with my pants earlier.
After entering the park, it was all downhill until I got to the lake, which was much needed. The downhill, not the lake. The lake actually made me feel the likelihood of seeing a snake today was at its peak. I decided I would stop when I got to the bottom of the hill because I thought it was a pretty sharp hill on the other side of the lake and I would just walk it all. This was mostly determined by the fact that my breathing had been replaced with grunting as my entire stomach was clenched up in a cramp.
I lived to see the lake, which was 19 minutes into my run, and 2.59K (1.61m). I was quite happy that I made it that far before walking. It only took a minute to cross the lake (.09K/.06m), and the hill wasn't that terrible, so I went ahead and ran up it. Ah yes, leave it to me to walk the flat part and run uphill.
Now I have another long downhill. I'm dreading the bottom of this hill, because it is where I will turn and head for home. This is where it's going to get rough. This is the 3rd K.
And, as predicted, I really was quite tired by this point. I was really surprised I was still running at all, with only one tiny walk.
I rounded the corner and the tallest hill I could imagine stood before me. I looked at the elevation profile again when I got home. It was 70 ft, over about .4K/.25m. Um, remember the hill on the RNBNBBQ10K route I feared because it's painful to walk? It's a 47.4 ft hill over .35K/.21m. I was never very good at algebra (or geometry or wherever we woulda learned this math), but I think this local hill was more brutal. I ran to the first intersection. It took me a long time, and my goal was strictly to have an intersection for measuring on the map, but it shaved about 10 feet off the hill. At this point, my total time was 25 minutes, and distance was 3.23K (2.01m).
Oh, and did I mention? No bloody sidewalks. Again, there was room for me to get over onto the grass when cars came, and it is a pretty wide road for most of the hill part. I just prefer to not be in the road.
As I panted up the hill, I saw a Mountain Dew can in the gutter, taunting me. Never more than at that moment, did a Dew sound so wonderful.
I finally got to the top of the hill. It leveled off slightly, but overall, I still had some more uphill before this ended. It just wasn't as severe as that first part. So, I was keeping an eye on my time so I would have an intersection I could start at, and a time to be able to remember. I finally started running at 29 minutes (so easy to remember), and 3.62K/2.25m.
Just a couple of blocks past there, I finally got back on a sidewalk, much to my relief. I also FINALLY made it back to the street where I usually turn around at, which means, dadadummm...my hills. Ah, how puny they look after the mountain I just went up. The downhill, of course was fine.
I was getting tired though, and didn't think I would make it back up the hill. This street runs straight back to the street I live on, but to make the route long enough, I had to cut over a couple of blocks to the main road, and then go back down my street. The street I chose to cut over on is the street that is before the sharpest part of this hill. I have run that sharp part many times, but not after running the rest of the hill. That part of the route was very strategically planned, and my original goal was to get to that street before I walked.
The street before it though looked like it was going to be where I stopped. It was too steep for the last section, I was too tired.
But lo and behold, I got to that street, and kept moving right along. I made it to the street I was turning on. I even made it a little ways down the street. I thought it would be flat here, but it actually was a little uphill, and I decided I had to walk again. I had made it 34 minutes, 4.36K/2.71m.
I was a bit woozy walking down this street. I haven't really been getting dizzy on runs, but I was just exhausted. I couldn't believe I'd been out there for 35 minutes. I knew I was close to home, and had covered a good distance. At the end of the 2 blocks, when I was about to turn back on the main road, I took a DEEP breath. It hurt like hell, but I needed air. At the 37 minute, 4.56K/2.84m mark, I took off for the final stretch. I was sure I would run it out...until I actually started running. I was so done, I was very worried that I wouldn't make it all the way home.
When I set this route, 5K actually hit just before my next door neighbor's house. I wanted to run to my alley, just to give it a little extra. I really wanted to run all the way to my back door. But I knew I would stop at my neighbor's. Somehow, running down the street opposite of the mini pinscher, I made it all the way to my house, and up the alley to the backdoor. 42 minutes, 5.07K, 3.15 miles.
I was sad I finished over 40 minutes, but I still beat my original goal of 45 minutes. It didn't seem like I had been out there that long at all. Overall, my breathing was pretty good today, which has probably been my #1 struggle. My throat wasn't burning, which was a problem on my first longer runs. The loop route definitely helped me, because when I got tired enough to walk for the first time, I was at the back of the loop in the park. It would have been right in the middle of the Figure 8 and I would have come on home on my other route.
The bottoms of my feet had been burning for awhile. I did not wear the proper socks for this at all. It took me a few minutes to tackle getting my feet, which felt like balloons, out of the shoes. Pulled the socks off, and there was just skin flapping everywhere. Ah, blisters. The sign of a nice long excruciating run.
Later in the day, my left achilles started hurting, and I had a headache. I doubt the headache was associated with the run, as I have been getting them a lot lately. Tuesday morning update: the achilles seems better/not So sore so far today, yay!
A couple of other running related stories before I get to my numbers breakdown...
In Australia, there was a race on Saturday called the Stiletto Run. The story I read did not include a distance, but it is what you would expect. A race, where the participants run in heels. Not recommended for the health of your legs, but Friends, a race I could finally win. I guarantee I could outrun just about anyone in a pair of well fitting heels. I have probably done more running in heels than in my sneakers. For reals, sign me up. Prize money is $5,000. That'll take care of the airfare and at least half of my Foster's budget.
Also, Husband and I have been watching a new legal tv show called "The Defenders." The one we watched after my run was about a woman who hit a runner. Granted, the runner was running at night, in all black, in the road. I haven't run at night, yet, although it's getting darker earlier and I fear it may be coming. I most certainly will not be running this route at night. I'm not sure, besides the hills, that it is worth running again at all for the lack of sidewalks throughout. It's unfortunate, because I liked the route.
I may give it one more try, and run it the opposite direction. I thought about that when I mapped it, but I thought the hills at the beginning would wear me out for the rest of the route. And they may, but that big hill is gonna be a whole lot easier going the other way!
Weather: 62, Sunny, 1 mph (it was actually quite a bit gustier than this), 36% Humidity
Time: 1p; Run 19, Walk 1, Run 5, Walk 4, Run 5, Walk 3, Run 5
Distance: 5.07K (3.15m)
Elevation: (Brace yourself) +247.6/-248.8/net -1.2 ft -- Compared to my old 5K route: +86.6/-88.8/net -2.2 ft
5K/10K: 41:23/1:27:28
Run Time: 34 minutes
Distance: 4.39K (2.72m) -- I believe I walked 13.65% of the total -- Compared to about 9% the last time I completed 5K
5K/10K: 39:08/1:22:44
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