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.