Never Thought I Would Say This...

There is something that my I would never, ever thought I would ever, ever say.

It is hard to only run 3 miles. Only 3 miles. I am so proud of myself. Just a few months ago I could barely slog a half mile and now, 3 miles is a a cake walk. Or a walk in the park. Or a slog on the treadmill.

I have gotten so used to do doing 5 miles minimum that just 3 is hard. I want to keep going.

Even though I am a bigger girl, it is strange to say that I can do so many miles faster then a walking pace. But I am so proud of myself.

My half-marathon is on Saturday and I know that I can do it.

The hardest decision is what am I going to wear? I got a day and a half to decide.

Happy Thursday!

Gaining Weight - rambling post

I usually weigh myself pretty regularly. Sometimes in the morning when I wake up. Sometimes before bed. I usually don't stress about my weight all that much. Really just how my clothes feel and if my pants are tight.

Today, I AM stressing because my pants are tight and the scale moved up 2 pounds.

I am one of those people who have never been totally successful at weight loss. Nor have I ever really tried til recently. High school, my weight was steady at 150, give or take a pound or 2. I did weigh 250 at one time (age 22) and dropped down to 180 before my divorce when I was 25. After the divorce I was 160 and stayed there happily the past few years, until working the graveyard shift and being in a relationship where someone prefers to stay at home and not out and about like I prefer, I think has really affected my weight. Depression really does affect weight.

There has been 2 times that I have dropped weight like magic and it involved being on the elliptical an hour or so a day everyday.


My diet is pretty healthy (I even cut out my beloved Starbucks from everyday to once a week) and I feel like I obsess over calories and what goes in my mouth more then I ever have-ever! But here I am, full of stress today over a few pounds, which has been over 10 pounds since last July. I am thinking it may be 15 pounds since July.

I have noticed that the places that I did work out hard before I started running alot, is the places that is gaining the most fat. This being my abdomen and my arms. I was getting some major definition in my arms last summer.

So, now, my question is what to do about it? I can't gain anymore weight or that will mean a whole new closet of clothes. Which I can't afford to do. With money or vanity. I can obsess over what goes in my mouth a little bit more then normal, but I don't want to cut calories too much or I feel that my energy level suffers. I can be on the elliptical everyday for an hour again and see if that helps. I can add more weight training to my workout during the weeks to bring some muscle definition back. I have been thinking about getting a Bodybugg again because that helped 2 years ago. Knowing how many calories I am burning and how many I can take in. I dropped 10 pounds and felt really good doing it.

I guess I will try a bit of all of the above. Repurchase a Bodybugg with Digital Display. Add more cross training. Not eat so much. And lay off some of the weekend alcohol, I only drink on weekends. I always worry that working out before work zaps all of my energy, but I can always nap on breaks. And count the clock before I can go home and sleep.

Does anyone else have any weight loss ideas?

2 back weeks of workouts

The last 2 weeks of working out have been so  different in energy level and feel.

The week of Sept. 12-17th, I felt just on the border of an illness and constant muscle aches. Everywhere. A couple of canker sores on my tounge, sleeping even hurt. The 15th, I did not even have it in me to finish a 5 mile tempo run. I just did not have any energy to move on the treadmill. Ghetto Renew was where I ran and it is always so hot, I was getting the chills because I was working it so hard. I gave up for fear of getting sick and inability to finish. I did 4.6 miles though.

That Saturday, the 17th, I wanted a comeback. I had a plan to run from the bandshell in Julia Davis Park, to Lucky Peak. Thats like 10 miles. The weather was going to be nice and I told the BF to meet me at the end with wine that I put in his car, my Casanova pizza, and a salad. It was a nice way to end the evening and to have a cheap mini-date. We both had enjoyed getting out of a restaurant and watch the fish jump in the river at sunset. It was great. I will plan a run like that again.

Last week, I felt groggy, but strong. I pounded out my 5 miles on Thursday like a beast. Completely easy, full of energy and total opposite of the week before. I could have done more then my 5 mile tempo, but I would suffer at work if I did. I did this workout on the HORRIBLE treadmill at our clubhouse. It shuts off after an hour so my 3 13min/miles and 2 11:30 didn't go as planned. I was working on my mile 5 when I hit 1 hour. The treadmill moved to a 5 minute cooldown. I had to bump that baby up and go as fast as I could to finish my mile before the treadmill stopped completely. I did it with seconds to spare and actually felt like puking afterward.

Saturday afternoon was back to Ghetto Renew for 8 miles. This would have been done on the Greenbelt but it was a BSU game day. Plus the Woman's Fitness Celebration and I wanted to be no where near where all those herds of people are. I did my 8 miles and felt really strong. I watched Death Race on the 'mill. Nothing like taking your mind off your legs like fast cars and muscular men. I need to watch more action movies on the treadmill for motivation. It was great. I felt good. Sweaty as all get out. But good. I felt strong. And proud of myself.

A few more days and I'll be a Half Marathon finisher!

Low Energy

Today is a low energy day. One of those days that I just want to stay in bed, watch TV, and call in sick to work.

But I can't. And didn't. I got up an hour later then normal and drove over to Ghetto Renew to do my 5 mile tempo run. But I just wasn't feeling it. I gave up before I hit 5 miles. I only did 4.65. 2 of those were 11:06 miles, which was my tempo. The others, I walked or slogged them.

At least I looked cute while at Ghetto Renew. But I was sweating like a fiend!

I don't know if it is the change in the weather, or I am mildly dehydrated and my diet has been crappy (I have 4 people I know whose birthdays are this week! 4 single Virgo males! So extra birthday dinners and lunches out), or that I am PMSing or I am sore from 45 minutes on elliptical on Tuesday or who knows why, but I did most of my run. I'll be walking over 20,000 steps tonight as a coworker is gone and I have to cover for him.

I plan on slogging on the greenbelt on Saturday afternoon when the high is only gonna be 73. Yes! Start at Julia Davis and make the BF pick me up at Lucky Peak with a waiting lunch. That's about 10 miles and 10 miles is what my long run is this weekend. I will have to convince him to make lunch and pick me up. Oooh or he can bring me Casanova's Pizza. And he can bring me to eat a whole large basque and something for himself and some wine... 

What do you do when you just want to stay in bed all day?


I would post a pic today but I just totally broke my USB connector thingie that attaches my camera to my computer. Both camera and laptop are about 7 years old. Sigh. Maybe I shoulda stayed in bed today.

I bought me new shoes today.

I had to get me new shoes for work today.

Pink, white and silver Nike Shox Qualify 2. I really need to be trying to break in another pair of running shoes, but I was in need of new work shoes.

I walk anywhere from 12,000 steps a day to 20,000 steps a day at work. I wear the tread off my shoes so quickly.

I prefer Shox to walk in at work. I picked these because are pink, they are bright and attract attention. The soles are a little stiff but they are pink.

They look awesome.

Maybe this Saturday, ill go to Shu's and get some new shoes. I got a groupon for there that I want to use soon.

What did you do for yourself today?

New Milestone

Thursdays tempo run was 5miles. Saturdays long run was 10 miles. I just hit a new milestone. Double digits! I am pretty proud of myself.

It really seems like the beginning of this year, I could barely jog a ONE MILE and now here I am on the treadmill for 10. I am proud of myself.

I am looking forward to this half marathon deal - in just 19 more days! If my 13 miles goes like my 10 miles, then I am going to have to walk a little more then expected. I was feeling good and comfortable until about mile 6 and then I started to lose a little bit of steam. I did push through the burning legs but halfway through mile 9, my gut said cool it down a bit. So I walked.

I wore compression socks during my slog on the dreadmill that I bought about a month ago. They did keep my calves happy, but I feel like I need something now for the knee up. My left knee feels a little swollen. I iced it yesterday and was planning a bike ride today, but I think I will wait a day. I am afraid of being unrunable (I guess that is not a word but oh well) and not being able to do what I have planned to do for the rest of the year.

Now, time for a new milestone. :-)

Race Fever

I received an email yesterday. It was from KIDO and it had a contest for a KISS Cruise.

But at the bottom of the email was a link for a 5k. I actually clicked on it and was going to enter. It starts at 11am! That's such a benefit for me.

But I had to get to work so I couldn't enter my credit card info. Plus I wanted a smoothie at the smoothie place across the street from my job since I didn't get a chance to eat lunch before work.

What did I see at the smoothie place, but an flyer for another race coming soon!

And another race flyer I did see!

Can I run my half October 1st and two 5Ks on the next two weekends after that? I still have to get my marathon training runs until the end of November, so I may wind up entering a few extra 5Ks more then planned.

What do you do when you get race fever and want to enter all the races?

Rollin' and Rollin'

Today is a bike day.

My whip.

Yes, there is duct tape on my bike. It is covering up the Bud Light logo, since I won this bike in '98 from a radio contest. And I don't care to advertise beer I don't drink. My bike has a ton of miles on it (I only drove my car, like 5000 miles last YEAR because I biked most of the year!) and I love it. There is also duct tape on my headlight too. I dropped my light last summer replacing the batteries. One of these days, I will replace both the bike and the Cateye. But until then, my ride is customized with duct tape.

The main reason for riding today is because there is construction along Boise Ave. where I usually park my car. I don't want to have to fight for parking with other BSU students, so I am biking everyday for a week or 2. My BF even said he would bike with me today. What?! He has not biked with me anywhere since the spring season. Which was one time all year on a ride to Lucky Peak and back. Something we did, like 10 times last year. He thinks a ride will help his knee since he is afraid to run on it. It is still bothering him even though he overworked it 6 weeks ago going 4 miles on the treadmill. I think it is more nerves of running the 5k more then anything. I really think he wants to prepare for a bike ride to Bogus. Last October he rode his bike to Bogus and back. Where it rained on him. And it snowed. And got a little hypothermic. Because he finished his ride in the dark. AND he didn't have a helmet on. And he wasn't very well prepared for how long and hard the ride would be. He had one bottle of water, a couple granola bars, and a long sleeved thermal I made him wear.

Anyways...

I think today's ride will be fun for both of us. He used to ride his bike with me everyday when I went to work-4 years ago.

Does your loved ones, um, sense of adventure scare you? I was really worried that he was going to get hit by a car on the mountain road last year. Or have a flat or something. He was prepared for nothing at all.

Race Change

The past few weeks, my BF's son has been on a major sport/exercise kick. It may have to do something with starting Jr. High and being around girls and testosterone hitting him, AND football season starting... But the BF's 12 year old son wants to run, lose weight and do running races. I made him and his dad do Main Street Mile last year and they both had about the same 7 minute mile finishing times.

Barber To Boise, I think, will be a good fit for him to do. 5k run/walk, no pressure. Starting at Bronco Stadium, a quick greenbelt loop and and finishing up back up at the Stadium with pancakes and live music. I will enter the BF's son, maybe the BF (or just get him a ticket to eat pancakes afterward with us because he really doesn't want to do runs for fun. Run For The Hills is a lot of pressure on him right now) and myself.

Bronco Stadium on football game day.

If I sign myself up for this, I really feel like I have to buy and wear a blue or orange sparkle skirt. I also have these great knee high socks, which were a gift from last year, that I have never worn.

 Really, look at the pictures above and tell me how I can slog in a race that is at the stadium, and NOT wear blue and orange?

I don't think I will do the City of Trees, as that will put me 3 running events, 3 weekends in a row, a month and a half before my marathon. I don't think that will be healthy for me because Seattle is my main event. If I take out City of Trees from my schedule and do Barber to Boise, I will have completed in my first year of running, a 5k, 10k, half-marathon AND a marathon. To me, that is something to be proud of. :-)

Do you plan out your race day gear a month in advance? What are the reasons why you pick to run one race over another?

Ahhh-Massage

It has been about 2 months since my last massage. Minus the fact that I gave one on Monday- I really needed to receive.

I had a Living Social deal that was an hour massage at a back cracker for, I think, $20. It was worth the 20 minute freeway drive in my car with no A/C with the temperature 90 degrees outside.

My massage said Carribean Coconut massage, but the massage oil smelled just like plain ol' massage lotion to me. There were beachy wave sounds on the CD player.

My therapist looked at me funny when I said my legs were hurting instead of my back at the intake. She didn't think the chiro could do much for my leg pain-lol.

My back (right shoulder blade) is where I keep my tension,  but with all these miles that I put on my feet daily (I walk most of my 8 hour shift at work too) my legs have been TIGHT! I nearly kicked my therapist when she was working my right IT Band. Yikes! That has NEVER happened before during one of my massages. Afterward, she suggested a foam roller insead of a Stick. And with the roller being cheaper then the Sticks, I may just have to break down and get one.

Now, on to get ready for work. I have an hour to get all this massage oil off me. Ick.

Do you prefer a foam roller, or a Stick? Inquiring minds want to know.
:-)

26 More Days

26 more days until my half marathon.

And I am getting nervous.

The BF's family likes to talk about running because it is a safe topic to talk about, unlike politics. Everyone can talk about running. The BF's 12 year old son wants to run in races now to get in shape. I made him and his dad run the Main Street Mile last year and they both had a good time. We talk about how the BF's step-father and BF's brother ran Bay To Breakers a few times. (I have been trying to talk the BF to run it in 2012.) The BF's mom's BFF ran Chicago Marathon while she was dating a runner many years ago. She did it around 4:30. Never did another marathon after that.

But Run for the Hills is coming up soon. I feel a slight panic a little more then my first run, the 10k a few weeks ago.

I feel confident that I will finish, but I know that this is going to be even more challenging then my 8 miles I can slog through on the dreadmill. Which I did for 2 hours on Sunday afternoon after a night of drinking beer and vodka, eating pulled pork, and watching the BSU Broncos win against Georgia. In my running clothes because I was going to go do my 8 miles Saturday.... But a season opener and some beer got in the way. Hammer Endurolytes have to be the best hangover remedy ever when taken before bed after drinking with a whole lot of water!

Anyways, back to my nerves. Can I slog all 13 miles without stopping to walk multiple times? No. Will I be near the end of the pack of the finishers once again? Of Course. Will there be tacos left for me to eat during the post race party? I really hope so. Will I deviate from my training plan in 2 weeks just to see how I will feel after a 13 mile run? Probably.

I need to add a little more cross training in this month. I have been slacking on the weights and I feel my arms losing some tone I was doing really good of building up. I do have a much needed massage scheduled for tomorrow! Yay!

26 more days and I will be a half marathon finisher!

One of Those Days

Well, today was one of Those days. It was cold this morning and all I wanted was to stay under the covers this morning. It was really hard to get out of bed. Plus, I have not had a whole lot of energy this week for whatever reason.

I had 5 miles of my schedule to do.  And I wanted to do it on the greenbelt. I parked in Julia Davis and I didn't expect the parking by the zoo to be all filled. Ugh. All of the BSU students have taken the parking I wanted. Oh well. I found a nice shady spot down by the tennis courts.

I did my 1st mile ok. My legs were stiff, my feet felt heavy, my knee was starting to ache, and my shins felt like they were starting to cramp. It was hard to slog along. I didn't want to walk but I just did not have the energy to keep up a jogging pace. It was just a day where my mind had the energy to go, but my body just didn't.

I felt like I walked as much as I slogged.

The 3rd mile my right I think, my Sartorius, I think that is what is bothering me. I had to look it up. It is always tight when I go more then a few miles. But I walked and and jogged and walked and jogged my 5 miles. My last mile, everything warmed up, and most aches went away except my Sartorius. My quads will be tired today. They were tight and sore since Sunday. I have a busy day at work, but the weather is nice and cool then what it has been. I will probably be taking a nap during my lunch break. Since after all runs now I have to get a nap in somewhere...