2012 goals

• run a total of 750 miles


• complete the Rock n Roll New Orleans half marathon in under 2:45


• run one mile every Wednesday as fast as I can and track my progress


• add strength training to the mix


• run at least four road races of any length throughout the year


• feed my body well, give it it's rest, and love it unconditionally
  

double blurrrgg.

That run was brutal. And seriously, it has taught me the lesson to never wait until noon to do my runs. It was hot, humid, and the sun was killing me. 80 degrees on New Years Eve, oh Texas. I should have brought a water bottle but I didn't. I need to figure out a way to carry one easily while I run. I felt okay physically until the end when I was just dragging to finish.

Mentally it was really hard. It wasn't the best run to end the year on. Five and a half miles and I was doubting myself quite a bit. If 5.5 miles was this hard, how am I ever going to complete the half marathon successfully? Maybe I'm in over my head. But quitting just isn't an option.

Anyways, enough pessimism. I did the run in 58:45 so I was still at a sub-11:00 min/mile and that's pretty rad. I took the dogs for a walk as my cool down.

My left shin has been hurting a little bit when I squat down. More stretching is in order.

Now I need to shower and find my zen. Happy New Year, y'all.

blurrrg.

I'm nursing a slight headache from a fun night out with the girls. Good conversation, laughter, dancing, karaoke, and live music. Deeeelightful.

It's sad that I slept 'till 8:30AM today and that feels like 'sleeping in'. I made my vegetable eggs for breakfast. I've been cooking my eggs in a dab of butter instead of using cooking spray lately... drooooool. So tasty.

I'm waiting for the ibuprofen and coffee to kick in and then I'm peeling myself of the couch and venturing out on my run. I've already got my route mapped and it seems so long. I'm just going to take it slow and try to enjoy it.

I'll be back in a few hours with a recap and my 2012 goals!

lazy, yet busy, day.

Ohhh weekend, how I adore you. I plan on spending today running errands and cleaning. As in, rearranging and cleaning the fridge and cabinets and vacuuming every inch of this damn house intense cleaning.

Yesterday I bailed on the birthday dinner due to a pretty gnarly headache. I ended up passing out on the couch for FIVE hours. FIVE HOURS. That's not even a nap anymore, that's moving into going to bed territory.

I woke up around ten and figured 'eh, oh well, I clearly needed sleep and not running', but then since I was feeling perked up after the rest, I ran anyways! So I laced up and did a late night 5K. I opted to not run the four miles I had tentatively planned just for my legs' sake. The run took 34:45, setting me at just over an 11 min/mile pace. Not bad, I was definitely taking it easy still. It was nice to get a sweat going, though, and now I'm caught up with my training for the week.

I've got a 5.5 mile run for Saturday and then it's heading to a NYE party. I've got work the following day so it won't be too crazy. I'm also going to try to tentatively set some running goals for 2012 in the next day or so. Stay tuned.

cough, cough.

I'm still a bit congested from the holiday sinus infection that I contracted at the end of my break, but overall I'm feeling better. I held off on my Tuesday run in order to rest, but I got right back on the saddle yesterday. I did my Tuesday replacement run. So it was 4.06 miles in 45:53. At about an 11:15 min/mile pace, it was slower than most of my runs have been lately, but I was taking it pretty easy since I'm still getting over the sickness. I had a couple of knee twinges, more discomfort than pain, but I finished the whole route and did a good cool down afteward. I stretched quite a bit once I got home.

I'm noticing that the pup's endurance has increased, as well! Good for her. She used to give me 'let's please stop' looks after the first mile and a half of our three mile runs, now she keeps a steady pace even through four milers. You go, girl.

I'm going to attempt to get back in line for the week with a run tonight. I'm scheduled for another four miles, but since I just did four yesterday, had a little bit of knee discomfort, AND I have a birthday dinner to go to and am short on time, I may cut it down to three miles instead. I'll see how I feel, I suppose. I want to do some yoga tonight, as well.

take that, holidays!

There's something so very satisfying about knowing that you kicked ass this week on the fitness front. I did all my scheduled runs PLUS some. Thursday was a travel day for me so there was no working out. Friday I made it to a zumba class at my favorite studio here in town and it totally kicked my ass. I wore my heart rate monitor and found that I burned 672 calories during the hour!

Saturday I was a little too sore from zumba to get my five mile run in, so instead I went to the gym with my mom and did an easy 45 minute elliptical work out. I only burned about 350 calories but I figured it was better than doing nothing at all.

This morning, even with some congestion and the feelings of a head cold, I got my ass out there and ran my five miles! I'm not going to say it felt good, because it was hard and I was fighting the wind and some achy legs, but I did get a second wind as I was finishing up my last mile and I completed the run in 53:22. Still at a sub-11:00 min/mile. I need to do some serious stretching today. In fact, I will do that as soon as I hop off the computer.

Since I have a temporary guest pass for my mom's gym until I leave town, I think tomorrow morning I'll get one last visit in before I hit the road. I'm definitely just going to walk on the treadmill. I need something very light! I haven't been sore from working out in so long, so I want to get some active recovery in.

My feet stink, that means it's time to shower. But first - a damn good stretching session! Merry Christmas, y'all!

so far so good this week.

Aside from eating like a total fatass (umm, ice cream and fries for lunch... WHAT?!), my runs have been good this week. Good paces, getting all the assigned miles run, feeling above decent (but below good). I've got five miles on Saturday! I'm excited/nervous. Excited because it will be the longest run in a very long time, nervous about my knees and my capabilities. I know I can do it, I just hope it's not miserable.

So quick details about this week so far:
-Monday: 3.11 miles in 33ish minutes
-Wednesday: 4.06 miles in 43:01

While I'm home, I'm thinking some Studio Vida! zumba is in essential.

bright and early run.

Well, maybe not as early as I had wanted, but I still woke up around 8:20AM, grabbed a quick snack (today was peanut butter on half a whole wheat english muffin), and headed out for my run at 9AM sharp. I did 4.52 miles in 47:42, setting me at a 10:33 min/mile. Excellent! I felt pretty good throughout most of the run, I definitely slugged through a few sections of it but in the end my time was pretty strong. For me, at least. I've got to work on getting these long runs started earlier and earlier. Baby steps.

I missed my Thursday run this week. It's the second week in a row that I've done that. I'm going to get my shit together this week and shake this laziness. I'm doing my week runs on Monday/Wednesday this week, since Thursday after work I'll be traveling home for the holidays. I plan on doing my long run on Saturday just as planned! I've got five miles to do and I swear if I end up doing it at the gym on a treadmill I will cry.

We are having an ugly sweater Christmas party at my place tonight. I'm making guacamole and sweet potato chips/fries (haven't decided yet). I'm looking forward to it!

getting my head back in the game.

It was a close call, but I did get my run done yesterday. I almost bailed again due to a post-work nap, but I got myself moving and did 4.06 miles in 44:38. Just under an 11:00 min/mile. I'm seeing an improvement in my pace trends. It used to be over an 11:00 pace every time, and lately it's all been below. Progress! Aiming for a three mile run tonight to catch up and get back on my schedule.

My eating has been bad and I think I'm realizing it's because I was getting bored with my diet. I eat generally the same things every day for lunch and my boredom was causing me to go down to the food court and get something different than what I had brought. So rather than bringing the same old salad every day I am trying to find different ways to get the fruits and veggies into my lunch. Today I brought a little bit of pasta with homemade tomato sauce and some leftover asparagus and butternut squash. I brought an apple and some carrots as a snack.

I just registered for a 10K in January, too! Just a little something to keep me motivated through the winter. It's the Surf N Turf 10K on the island. So far I'm going it alone, but I'll see if I can't recruit some buddies.

laaaaaaazy.

It's true - I have been bitten by the lazy bug. I missed my Thursday run last week in lieu of my work Christmas party. I did do my Saturday 4 mile run, in spite of the nasty weather. I ran in on the treadmill like a trooper, finished in about 42 minutes, I think. So 2/3 runs last week. Not terrible buuut...

...this week I'm off to a bad start. I didn't do my Tuesday run yesterday out of sheer laziness. When I got home from work I sat on the couch for a while and then ended up going out for a friend's birthday. I have absolutely every intention of going today. I'm scheduled for a four mile run but I think I might cut it down to three and a half. When I formulated my training scheduled, I didn't have much to go off of. Now I'm realizing how to do this smarter and am cutting down any week run that is more than four miles. I want to keep my Tuesday/Thursday runs between three and four and stick to doing the longer runs just once a week. This week since my 'long' run is 4.5 miles, I figure I'll do a 3.5 as a 'shorter' run.

Well, now I'm just incessantly rambling so goodbye!

BRRRRRRRR.

IT. IS. COLD.

3.63 miles tonight, 37:49. I'm always happy with a sub 11:00 min/mile and my times seem to be improving significantly in the past week or two. I've been around 10:30-ish. I don't feel like writing a lot, but I did the scheduled run and that's all that matters.

Hot shower time.

oof.

Yesterday was ridiculous. I was a bit ambitious, I think. I did my run in the morning and after going to a cold stunned turtle training session I lounged for a little bit. When it starts to near time to head downtown, Roommate asks if I want to bike. I decided it sounded like a great idea so off we went. It about 7 miles downtown, and it ended up being about 50 minutes.

Once we got downtown we paid for the race and then I started running. I was running with a friend's man, who has long legs and a huge stride, so I was just trying to keep up the pace with him. The run was actually only about a mile and a half, but we did it in 12:50, making the run a 8:33 min/mile. WTF. No wonder I was dying. But I did it and we were done and then we went to have a few beers.

Around 9PM we started the bike back home, which was miserable. My legs were so tired, well, really my whole body was tired. But we finally made it and my legs hurt and my butt hurt from the bike seat and I was so glad to get home to a hot shower and crawling into bed. I think I burned about 1,500 calories with everything I did. Craaazy.

While it really was a great day and I'm glad I moved around so much, I can honestly say that I am grateful I don't have to run again 'till Tuesday.

P.S.

Mini success: my heart rate monitor was falling down a lot today during the run. Time to tighten it up! Good thing? I certainly think so.

lots of running today.

I actually woke up at 7:30AM this morning to run. That is almost unheard of for me. I grabbed a bowl of oatmeal and was out the door by 8AM. I did my four scheduled miles, and let me tell you, today is was tough. My legs were tired and it seemed to drag. I think it's hard for me to run in the mornings. When I run in the evenings, my body is all limbered up and loose from a day of working/doing whatever. Morning runs are kind of a shock to my body. I hope they get easier! I definitely need to get my long runs done in the mornings because the race is in the morning and I want to be used to it. Plus, I need to figure out what does and does not work for fueling and whether I should eat a big meal the night before and just a small breakfast or if I need to eat more in the morning. We'll see. This run was a challenge though, both mentally and physically.

I still have the 3K to run tonight. I'm going to eat some macaroni and cheese for lunch since I'm running so much today. I've got some turkey burgers cooking right now, too.

I'll be back with another race recap later tonight or some time tomorrow.

recaps.

I'll start with the recap of today's run. I did the 3.11 mile route and finished in 32:50. That set me at a 10:33 min/mile pace. Better than most lately. I definitely pushed harder and was more tired, but I was able to keep that pace up consistently throughout the entire run so I wasn't pushing TOO hard. I'm glad I forced myself to go right after work, I was feeling really tired and wanted to chill out. I know if I had plopped down on the couch I'd still be there right now, though.

Since it is December 1st, I suppose that means I have officially completed my first month of training. It's been good so far. I only missed one 2.5 mile run, but I added two extra runs throughout the month, one of which was a 3.74 mile run a few days after the missed run, so I more than made up for it. So far, I'm injury free. No sign of shin splints, minimal knee pain/discomfort. I've been icing my knees after runs as needed. I should probably start stretching more, though, so there's a goal I can have for the upcoming months. I'm feeling strong, seeing some progress in different forms, and am excited about continuing training - I'd say month #1 was a success!

Well, it's time to shower and raid the fridge. Maybe I'll head out for a beer later..

another race on the horizon.

Roommate just informed me there is a 3K downtown on Saturday night for the Harbor Lights Festival. I just registered for it! It is benefiting the Ronald McDonald House. I'm scheduled to run four miles that day so I may be a little crazy and run the four miles in the morning and then do the 3K that evening. It starts at 6PM. Bad idea? We even get free scarves out of it!

It is my Friday. All I have on my weekend agenda (aside from the race and festival now) is tonight's run, making Christmas presents, and frolicking at the park tomorrow morning. I'll probably throw in a glass or two of wine somewhere in there, as well.

Also, I made guacamole last night and it's delicious. Very simple, too. It's just avocado, garlic salt, lemon juice, and a little bit of Rotel. Nom nom nom.

I shall return here later to recap tonight's three miler.

still goin' strong.

Today was my first scheduled run of week 4 of training. I had kind of planned on cutting it short since I did two longer runs on Saturday and Sunday, buuuuuut go figure I couldn't bring myself to cut it down and I did my planned length. I did my standard 3.11 mile route around the neighborhood in 34:56, making it an 11:13 min/mile pace. The exact pace as Sunday, if I remember correctly. I felt good throughout the run, though I think the pup got tired after the first mile. She kept staring up at me, as if to say "are we done yet...?" Luckily she found some cats to chase to keep her occupied.

After the cool down walk, I was coming in through the back gate and pup #2 was waiting there, looking so pitiful and ready to get out of the backyard. So I unhooked pup #1 and grabbed pup #2 and took him for a little stroll around the block. I think he appreciated it.

Now I'm going to figure out what to munch on for dinner, then I'll probably sit around and sew.

My first month of training is almost over, too! Celebration will occur, more than likely.

extra run

Yesterday I decided to pop in an extra run for the week. Since I indulged so much over Thanksgiving I figured it would do me some good. I planned on doing a short, leisurely run of maybe two miles or so. Well, Roommate hadn't done his long run on Saturday so I ended up tagging along while he did it. So it was a 3.72 mile run and we finished in 41:44, making it an 11:13 min/mile. I felt great throughout the whole run. The pace was perfect and I didn't have any leg pain and my breathing was easier than it has been. The run just felt like a breeze.

Since I did two long runs two days in a row, I'm debating how to approach the rest of the week. I do feel that I can still manage my normal scheduled runs, even with that extra 3.72 in there, but I fear injury. So I might switch Tuesday's three miler out for a two miler and call it even. I've got a three mile run scheduled for Thursday and a four miler on Saturday. The four mile run will be the longest I've done in about a year.

So far so good (nay, GREAT) with training.

i'll admit...

...this week wasn't the best. I overate and I missed my Thursday run. I'm really not going to stress, though. I picked right back up with my Saturday long run this morning. I did 3.5 miles in 37:24, averaging at a 10:41 min/mile. I ran this run on the treadmill at the gym. It was pretty boring, but I had to get it done. My first mile was at a 10:10 min pace, and the last two and a half I rotated between 11 minutes and 10:30 minutes. I definitely will be avoiding treadmills at all cost for these longer runs.

Now that I'm back home from the holiday break, I'm sure I'll be back in my normal routine. Unfortunately, I left my heart rate monitor watch at my parents' house. Hopefully they can send it to me pronto!

11.21.2011

Even though I try to do my runs Tuesday/Thursday/Saturday, because it is Thanksgiving week, I'm moving things around a bit. I did Tuesday's three miler (3.15, really) today because we are having a pre-Thanksgiving friend dinner at the house tomorrow since everyone will be gone on the actual holiday. I'm most definitely not going to have the time to fit a run in, PLUS I'm all by myself at work tomorrow and I'm going to be exhausted by the end. So I just got it out of out the way tonight. I ran the 3.15 miles in 35:43 minutes, putting me at an 11:20 min/mile pace.

Today I tried something different - I brought BOTH dogs with me. It wasn't as horrible as I expected it to be, though I must admit that I was hoping they'd up my speed a bit. Doesn't seem to have happened. But I did have to deal with 101 Dalmations-style tangles, slight pulling, and a dog wrapped around a stop sign who then decided to plop down in a roadside puddle and cool off for a bit. It's a good thing they're cute...

I plan on doing my Thursday three mile run as scheduled. I'll be back home so I get to revisit an old route from my previous half marathon training. I believe I will do my Saturday long run while I am there, too, which is just another 3.5 miles this week. Maybe I'll even fit in a Zumba class. I miss the fantastic folks out at Studio Vida!

11.19.2011

Today was my long run, completing Week 3 of training. Since my Wednesday run turned out to be longer than anticipated, this run wasn't really my 'long' run. In fact, it turned out to be the same distance as the run on Wednesday. 3.74 miles in 43:30, making my pace an 11:37 min/mile. A little slower than usual but not a big deal, it was a longer distance than I've been doing too. And I felt pretty great throughout the whole thing. It was about five minutes slower than the one I ran on Wednesday, but I'm attributing that to the lack of race energy and my competitive nature. Also, because it was slower, this run was MUCH more pleasant than Wednesday's.

I did have a few knee issues, but no actual pain. I'm mostly feeling what seems like pressure underneath my knee caps. I also felt my IT band twinge a few times but I find that when I really focus on my form, I can prevent that from happening.

Not only was my run damn good, but it perked me up after a long day at work. I have much more energy now. I'm going to eat a salad and a turkey burger for dinner and then possibly go meet up with the gals.

my first '5K'.

This afternoon was the Turkey Trot on campus. It claimed to be a three mile run, costing only a canned good donation to participate. We were on our marks and started the race at 5PM and I started my HRM. This was a tough one. It was more inclines than I was used to and I could feel myself going faster than normal just because I was running with other people. But I was really disappointed when I got to the 'half-mile' marker and checked my timer - 6:30. Wait.. what? Really? There's no way I'm running at a 13:00 min/mile pace when I'm pushing super hard and my HRM is telling me my heart rate is at like 90%. No. Freaking. Way. Plus a bunch of children were kicking my ass, it was very disheartening. So I just continued on my way and continued to be confused as to how my time was so shitty when I was working so hard.

My final time was 38:00 min/mile - a far cry from the 30 minute goal that I had set for myself. I truly felt that there was absolutely no way that I took that long to run three miles. Even at my slowest I'm sitting at a 12:00 min/mile. And this definitely wasn't my slowest. Roommate and I cooled down a bit and drank some water while I bitched about how something was fishy. So we get home and I pull up MapMyRun and... sure enough...

The freaking route was 3.74 miles! I feel much better about a time of 38:00 minutes for that distance. And it makes much more sense. Running a 10:09 pace is good for me, and sustaining it for almost four miles would explain why I was pooped.

So I'll consider my first race a win. Now for a shower and a turkey burger.

11.14.2011

After a very stressful day yesterday, I forced myself to go out and self-medicate with my scheduled run. It was a 2.5 miler that, as usual, ended up being my standard 2.57 mile route around the neighborhood. Roommate and I finished in 28:50, setting us at an 11:13 min/mile pace. I'm glad I actually went because it boosted my endorphins and lord knows I needed that. I had felt really nauseous and overheated and had a terrible headache before, but I felt good afterward. So the first run of week three of training is in the books.

It turns out that Turkey Trot 5K is THIS Wednesday, not next Wednesday. So that will take the place of my scheduled 3 mile run tomorrow. The cost of racing is just a canned good! I'm probably not going to be able to get it under 30 minutes but I'm more than okay with that. I'm also already looking into some 10Ks to run around January-ish, when it would fit into where I am in training.

11.12.2011

Had my second 'long run' of training today. It was just another three miles. I did the 5K loop that I'm familiar with around the neighborhood. The weather was terrific. Nice and breezy and cool. So I did 3.11 miles in 33:20, putting me at a 10:43 min/mile pace. I know my first mile was done in about 10 minutes, but it tired me out and I slowed down for the last two. Boyfriend rode alongside me on the bike and we brought the pup.

So week 2 of training is DONE. I even got an extra run in this week. I'll call that a success. Roommate and I are already planning out our longer routes for when we get up to the five mile-ish mark. Still have a couple of weeks to go until then, though.

We are running a Turkey Trot on campus on the Wednesday before Thanksgiving. My tentative goal is to do it in 30 minutes. We'll see what happens.

11.10.2011

Did my second 2.5 miler of the week today. I did the same route as on Tuesday, so it was really 2.57 miles. On Tuesday, my time was 28:30, today it was 26:25! Shaved two minutes off. I partially blame the dog because he was pulling me a bit but, hey, whatever works! No knee issues today, even though I forgot to wear my brace. So all in all a good run. I've got a three mile 'long' run on Saturday and that will complete Week 2 of half-marathon training. Lovin' it.

The boy gets in tonight at midnight! Woohoo!

catching up.

I have neglected this thing for the past week or so! Things have been crazy with work and my mom came into town. I've been keeping up with training, though, don't worry! I did my 3 mile long run on Saturday (which ended up being 3.3 miles) in about 36 minutes. I wasn't supposed to run again until today, but after a stressful day at work yesterday I needed a release. I set out and did a very slow 1.68 mile jog. I was at about a 12 min/mile pace. I think I was going too slow and I ended up causing some knee discomfort.

Today I wore my knee brace for my scheduled 2.5 mile run. Roommate and I did a route around the 'hood and it ended up being 2.57 miles in 28:30, setting us at an 11:05 min/mile pace. It felt really good. It's a good sign that a) my heart rate isn't getting up into the crazy percentages nearly as much during my runs so my fitness is improving and b) we can have short conversations while we run. While I might not be seeing major improvements in my times, these are definitely minor victories for me.

I iced my knee after the run today with some frozen onions. I think I'll take a shower and eat some beans for dinner and then hit the hay early. I worked an eleven hour day today in preparation for our big donor event tomorrow, and I'm sure tomorrow will be almost the same. BUT it will all be over and done with in less than 24 hours and the boy gets into town on Thursday and all will be good.

11.2.2011 workout.

Today was day 2 of half marathon training. Roommate and I went to a local high school track to do this run. We wanted the springiness of the track versus the ouchiness of the road and sidewalks. We did ten laps, 2.5 mile, in 26 minutes. That set us at an average of 10:24 min/mile pace. Not too shabby! We did a few laps harder than others with easier laps in between. It was a challenge but nothing too awful. We walked another half a mile after our run.

So track runs... not awful. But definitely not something that I'd want to do all the time or for more than three mile runs. But now that I know it's there, I might make use of it for some intervals or something.

My eating has been atrocious this past week. Like.. sitting on the couch eating out of a bag of Doritos atrocious. I've gotta work on that.

My momma is coming to visit this weekend, I'm super excited about it. I'm going to show her around work, take her to lunch, make her walk around downtown with me, and cook bread with her!

11.1.2011 workout.

I took yesterday off from working out and as soon as I got home from work, I showered and got ready to hand out candy! We brought the fire pit and chairs out into the front yard and had a fire, some red wine, and our guitars. It was divine. I probably had a little too much wine but I was still in bed at a reasonable hour. I didn't wake up in time to take a shower this morning so my hair smelled of bonfire all day. I secretly didn't really mind too much.

Today is the first day of half-marathon training. I'm starting small and slowly working my mileages up. This first week consists of miles that I have been running for the past few weeks anyways. Today was a two miler (it ended up being 2.08 miles) and I did it in 21:00 mins. THAT PUTS ME AT A 10:05 min/mile. Much, much better than where I have been. So hooray for that. I did a five minute cool down walk afterward, and when I got home I did some squats, planks, and leg lift donkey kick lookin' things (I have no idea what the hell they're called, but it worked my ass).

The rest of the week looks something like this:

• Wednesday: nice, leisurely bike ride
  
• Thursday: 2.5 mile run
• Friday: nice, leisurely walk
  
• Saturday: 3 mile long run

My mom is coming to visit this weekend, as well, so I think I will recruit her for my walk on Saturday! She has been getting more active, as well, and I'm really proud of her! Momma has been tearin' up the gym 4x a week!

I ate a cupcake today.

10.30.2011 workout.

After an afternoon nap, I set out and did a 3.15 mile run in 34:30, right at the 11:00min/mile pace as usual. I felt pretty good through the whole run. I even got back in time to catch the beginning of the new episode of the Walking Dead. That is a win overall. I'm going to make some chicken and a salad for dinner, then it's shower, reading, and bed time.

10.27 and 10.29.2011 workouts.

So this weekend I was a lazy waste of space for the most part. Thursday after work, I went for a leisurely (but still heart pumping) bike ride with the roommate. We were out for about an hour and then we got back and I got ready to go out with the girls.

I was feeling pretty rough on Friday and spent most of my day on the couch. Once evening came around, we got our costumes prepped and headed downtown to the Dia de los Muertes festival and enjoyed friends, live music, and drinks. It was so much fun, but today I repeated the 'lie on the couch and watch tv all day' thing. I made it a point to watch Hocus Pocus, which I have been wanting to watch for over a week now.

Afterward, I was going to back out of a run but decided against it. I ended up doing 2.93 miles in 32:50, putting me at just slightly over an 11:00 min/mile pace. I felt really good today and really felt like I could have gone for four or five miles, but my knee was getting a little irked. I'm going to stretch out really well after I shower before I head to bed.

I have been eating so much asparagus and butternut squash. But alas, I have eaten all of my stock over the past few days. Dinner tonight was those tasty veggies, plus a turkey burger with HOMEMADE PICKLES, a delicious treat complements of the roommate.

Official half marathon training starts on November 1st. Pretty stoked.

10.26.2011 workout.

This evening I ran 2.53 miles in 28:09, putting me at an 11:07 min/mile. Boooo, but I felt pretty good during this run. I brought the pup along with me. It felt nice outside and I explored some new areas of my neighborhood that I have yet to venture to. My knees felt a bit achy but other than that, I'd say it was a more than decent run!

Time for some chicken and vegetable stir fry for dinner.

10.25.2011 workout.

Since I had been feeling lousy the past few days, I rested. But today I got back in the saddle and went for a run since I was feeling a little better and could actually breathe out of my nose. I ran 2.58 miles through the neighborhood and around to Ocean Dr. I finished in 28:10, putting me at a 10:55 min/mile. It sucks getting super winded and tired and feeling like I'm going at a decent pace, and then when I come home and map the run I find I was actually going slow (for my standards, at least). I guess the speed will come in time. If I can just shave a minute or 1:30 off my mile I'd be more than happy.

I've got my training schedule for the half marathon all set. I figure I can tweak it as I go, but it's a good base to go by. I'll see if I can somehow get it up here.

I've got two giant bundles of asparagus in the fridge that I need to cook before they go bad so I'll probably eat ridiculous amounts of it in the next few days. My pee will smell terrific.

HOLY SHIT, IT'S OFFICIAL...

...I just registered for my first half marathon. I will be running the Rock 'N' Roll Half Marathon in New Orleans on March 4th. The main reason? IT WAS CHEAP. They are doing a promotion where the will discount $1 for each point the Saints win by. Well, apparently they won by 55 yesterday, which brings the registration from $90 to $38 (including processing fees & all). So I grew some balls and registered. Thank goodness I'll be able to use my vacation leave by then. I'm super fucking stoked, but also extremely nervous.

I better get my ass in gear. I'm formulating a training plan as we speak... Also, I need to shake this cold that I've come down with. It's bumming me out!

10.22.2011 workout

For starters, Roommate and I biked to a restaurant for lunch with his family instead of driving. That set a good tone for the rest of the day & also managed to ease my slight hangover. So round trip it was about a six mile ride. I didn't time it but I got sweaty during both so whatever!

After a lengthy nap this afternoon, I set out to run. I was just going to walk on the treadmill since I'm exhausted and I can feel a sore throat possibly coming on. BUUUUT there were some treadmill issues. Mainly just me realizing that since we put up the Halloween lights, the extension cord is unavailable and I had nothing to plug the treadmill into. So I just went around the neighborhood with the dog. I did 2.13 miles in about 24 minutes, putting me at about an 11:20min/mile. It was definitely a slower run but it felt good to keep it slow. And for once, I managed to stay in my heart rate range throughout most of the run.

I think it's time for a shower, some soup & hot tea, maybe a movie, and then bed!

10.21.2011 workout

I took yesterday as a rest day. I just didn't have time to run. When I got home from work, I had to run to the grocery store to get food and pumpkin carving supplies. Then we came home and had the girls over for the carving! I carved a dinosaur. It was really fun. We went to see Jared play afterward and I got pretty silly.

I woke up early today and cleaned most of the day. When Dave got home from work we embarked on our run. We did 2.9 miles in 30:53. That put us at about a 10:40min/mile pace. It felt pretty good. I can feel it in my legs now, they're tired! And I guess I am, too.

I made a pot of vegetable soup today but it's missing something. I don't know what... It's chock full of veggies, though, so I'll munch on it for the rest of the week!

10.19.2011 workout (+awesome food)

Today was an overall terrific day. I ate super well. Breakfast was an egg and veggie taco in a whole wheat tortilla, lunch was salad and beans, dinner was tilapia, asparagus, and some sweet potato. Yum. Before I worked out I had peanut butter and banana on half a whole wheat english muffin.

Now, today I had every intention of doing my run on the treadmill. So I warmed up for a few minutes then wanted to see how fast I could run a mile. A little over halfway through my run, the treadmill turned itself off. I went from 7.0mph to zero in one second. I almost ate shit, but managed to not fall. I couldn't figure out how to get the damn thing to turn back on so I just took it to the road. I went without the pup today. I decided to keep with my plan of intervals and I did 1.85 miles with a combination of 'sprints' (not quite sprinting, but definitely close for me), a slow jog, and a tiny bit of walking. The HRM says I burned 374 calories. Is that correct? Who knows. But I do know it was an awesome workout.

After dinner, Roommate and I decorated the house in the Halloween spirit. Spoooooky!

Also...

I need to stop going out. I'm sabatoging my own efforts! We went out to pint night last night and however many calories I did burn on my run were consumed in beer and then some. I'm seeing a pattern here. At least for now, I need to cut the booze out or at least cut back a lot. Lately I haven't really been going out too much, maybe just once a week. But this week has been especially bad. Saturday and Sunday I had night rentals at work so we went out to dinner beforehand. Money and calories poorly spent. Then on top of that, we did pint night last night.

I need to save my money, my liver, and my body and just knock it off for a while!

On a somewhat related note, I've been doing pretty damn good quitting smoking. I have only smoked on days that I've gone out, and I only had two or three at most. Thank you E-Cig, you a life saver. My lungs (and wallet) thank you.

10.18.2011 workout

My heart rate monitor finally arrived yesterday! AND the weather was absolutely beautiful, so I immediately donned my running clothes when I got home from work and put the new device to the test. I did 2.19 miles in 24:40. BOOOOO. That put my pace at over 11:00min/mile. I think part of the slow-down was because of the damn HRM.

I plugged in all my stats and it gave me a range of 128-167 bpm. Well, once I started running and got halfway through, my heart rate was around 175 and the stupid thing kept yelling at me that I was out of my range. So I decided to listen to it and slowed it down so my heart rate would slow. Well, let me tell you, being in the range did NOT feel difficult enough for me. When I'm working out, I like to FEEL it. So at some point during my run, I just said 'fuck it' and kept my own pace, ignoring the 'out of range' beeping coming from the watch.

Another gripe I have about the monitor is that I feel like it overestimated the amount of calories that I burned. A 25 minute run at an 11:00min/mile pace + a five minute cool down walk couldn't have possibly made me burn 343 calories, right?

I am undecided on my feelings on it right now. I'll try it again this evening. I think I will do intervals on the treadmill instead of a neighborhood jog.

10.17.2011 workout

I was exhausted when I got home from work and I passed out for about an hour and a half. Luckily, I forced myself to get up and go out for a run. I told myself I'd only do a mile or so, but I ended up doing my longest run since picking running back up - 2.26 miles! I did it in 23:40, which put my pace at 10:30/mile. Not too shabby! And that's not accounting for the short little breaks I had to take for the pup to stop and sniff things and pee and run after cats. Overall it was a good run, I felt pretty strong!

10.15.2011 workout

I had so much motivation after work today. I got home and immediately donned my running clothes. I ended up doing 1.86 miles in about 20 minutes, putting me at a 10:45min/mile pace. While I wasn't going faster, I felt so much stronger today and my breathing was much easier and more controlled. So that's some progress right there.

Roommate & I are doing pizza and The Walking Dead tonight. I bought some frozen Kashi pizza that wasn't nearly as shitty seeming as the other standard ones. We'll see how it is!

I'm sleepy.

the hangover strikes back

Yesterday I was feeling the effects of the previous night pretty harshly. I spent a good chunk of my morning and afternoon in my bed with Netflix. I'm still fairly sore from Wednesday's strength training, and with the combination of that and the hangover, I decided this was a perfect day to rest.

Fortunately, Roommate didn't let that happen! I was talking to him about how I've gotten some sort of exercise almost every day in that past week (except for Tuesday and today) and his response was, "well fuck, let's go for a bike ride then!" We ended up riding for about an hour or so. It was definitely a leisurely pace but I figure moving for an hour was better than not!

10.13.2011 workout

A short 1.58 mile jog around the neighborhood and up Ocean Dr. Finished in just under 17 minutes and my pace was averaged at 10:40/mile. Better than yesterday's 10:49, but not by much. Hopefully I'll be back around my ten minute mile in a month or two. No matter how slow it was, though, I am very glad I went at all. I laid in bed for a good half an hour contemplating whether I was going to go or not. It was when a serious craving for some Ramen noodles (WTF) kicked in that I decided I'd better go before eating any shit food. So this run conquered both my laziness and a potentially crappy meal!

I think I might try an interval workout this weekend. I think I may be able to lengthen my workout if I'm getting short breaks in between quick spurts of high intensity.

Roommate and I are having people over for music, drinks, and a fire in the backyard pit tonight so I'll probably end up drinking beer and canceling out this entire run. I think I'm okay with that, though.

10.12.2011 workout

So Roommate goes to the gym with his buddy on MWF & today they said they would wait for me, so after work I changed really quick and we headed to the campus. We jogged the (approximately) 1.2 miles there. I totally forgot to start my timer on my watch on the way there - bummer (I did time the way back, though, and I averaged just under 11 minutes per mile). I'm definitely anticipating some serious improvement in my pace as I continue to run. Typically, a 10 minute mile is my perfect, comfortable pace but I've been able to run 8:30 min/miles before. I'm looking forward to building up my aerobic endurance again and NOT huffing and puffing all the time.

Once we got to the gym, we did some strength training. I mostly worked on my arms, but did some ab shit as well. Then I jogged back while the boys mostly walked.

I can feel the soreness setting in already. I wish I had my heart rate monitor today, also. I'm curious if my running was as hard of a workout as it felt. Being out of shape sucks. But it should be delivered in a week or so and then I'll report back with how nifty it really is.

wise investment or not? i can't tell yet.

I just ordered this gizmo off of Amazon. It's the Polar FT4F heart rate monitor. It'll be able to help me make sure that I'm working out at the right intensity and it'll give me an accurate measure of how many calories I'm burning in a work out. Plus it does neat things like track your fitness progress over time and what not.

It was $65 dollars, which makes my tummy hurt thinking about, but I'm hoping that it'll help me get better work outs in and, since it was so pricey, maybe it will motivate me to work out more so I can get my money out of it!

NUMBA ONE

So here I am, embarking on an adventure back into running. I'd like to train for and run a half marathon sometime in 2012, but first I've got to get back into the swing of things. I was training for a half around this time last year and got sidelined with an injury. That kept me out for about a month or two, and I've been sidelined by laziness almost ever since. So I'm starting from scratch here, and I'll use this blog to monitor my progress and log my training, as well as keep an eye on what I'm putting into my body. I'm also in the process of quitting smoking, so I'll be noting my successes/failures about that, as well.

So anybody out there who is reading, enjoy!