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Back in the saddle

Tonight I ran for 45 minutes and went 3.16 miles. Felt pretty good but I would like to have seen my HR a little lower (average 147 but I was shooting for 140).

I also had a massage today which was a nice treat.

Dehydration

Friday started out with a killer sore throat & I debated skipping my run. After several hours I had talked myself into going so I headed out in the midday sun. I don’t take water on my runs & this one was no different.

My target heart rate was 145 but I started out at 160 & couldn’t bring it any lower unless I slowed to a walk. I began feeling very nauseated, and 30 minutes into my run I decided to stop and walk home. (It should have been a 50 minute run.) It took my another 20 minutes to walk home and by then I was feeling really poorly. I drank a glass of water & went to bed.

Within a few hours I was really sick. My throat was burning, my head was pounding, and every muscle in my body hurt. I spent the rest of the day in bed but my body was wracked with pain & I couldn’t sleep. It felt similar to a bad case of mastitis. I tried taking ibuprofen and my migraine medication but it didn’t even touch the pain.

I alternated rubbing arnica & Ben-Gay into my muscles, I took arnica by mouth, and I nibbled on the corner of a protein bar. The day and night dragged on forever.

Saturday morning came and I was no better. I was feverish & in so much pain that I cried off and on for a lot of the day. Phil suggested that maybe I was dehdrated, so I ate a Gu, and drank 2 bottles of Propel, and ate a few bites of pasta salad. I took several hot baths & would feel a bit better during that time but it didn’t last. By now I was hearing noises in my head every time I moved, & by late afternoon I was dizzy and my vision kept going dark. I thought I was going to pass out. At this point I Googled dehydration & heat stroke & what I read scared me. I had all of the symptoms of mild dehdration, most of the symptoms of moderate dehydration, and a couple of the symptoms of severe dehydration.

Phil brought me some Pedialyte & I drank it through the evening and night. I slept in the recliner because it was more comfortable than my bed. By morning (now) I was feeling much better. Although I’m still very weak & in a fair amount of pain, it’s not the excruciating pain I’ve dealt with for the past 2 days. My appetite is starting to come back & I’m still working on the Pedialyte in the hopes that I will be back to normal tomorrow.

I don’t know why it hit me after only 30 minutes in the sun. I know that I don’t normally spend a lot of time in the sun, and I had slacked off on forcing myself to drink 64+ oz of water daily. I had no idea dehydration was this painful & I never want to feel this way again.

Monday: 50 minutes, 3.4 miles, HR averaged 140-145
Tuesday: 35 minutes, 2.7 miles, HR 145
Wednesday: 42 minutes, 3.2 miles, HR 140
Today: 35 minutes, 2.79 miles, HR 147

Today's run was much better than yesterday's.

Tonight I ran 2.18 miles in 30 minutes. My HR was 137.

Freedom Run race report (short version)

Click here to read the long version.



I got up at 5 am, after going to bed at 12:30. I was tired and my legs were tight and sore from pushing too hard in previous workouts this week.

We got to the park, registered, and were in place at 7:15 a.m. when the gun went off. There were a lot of people and it was easy to run faster than normal in all the excitement. I'd been worried about my legs but they didn't bother me for long. The first mile was pretty easy. I wondered if I was running too fast but it was nice and cool & I was being passed by lots of people so I didn't think I was going too fast.

The second mile we'd moved into the sun so I was getting warm. People were cheering along the parade route & it seemed that I was working harder than the runners around me (ie, they looked like they were having fun and I felt like I was getting a workout). I heard someone nearby say we were at the halfway point and had been running for 16 minutes.

By mile 3 I was tired & relieved to be 2/3 done. Someone on the sidelines yelled, "You're almost there! Just up the hill and you're done!" I hadn't realized we were heading up a hill & was disheartened. The hill was tough but I managed to keep running. I'd thought about stopping quite a few times during the race but wouldn't allow myself. I was frustrated that I even wanted to stop since the distance was familiar to me and shouldn't have been a real challenge.

Into the home stretch and I was thinking how foolish I'd been to be excited about the race. It was hard work & I was ready to be done. I'd wanted to finish in 36 minutes and could see that I had a minute and a half to get there. I didn't think I could speed up at all, so I just prayed the distance was short enough to get me there. When I saw the clock get to 35:30 I knew I'd make it & found a burst of energy to speed me up & push me through the finish line.

Afterwards I was tired, sweaty, and glad to be done. I could have sat down right there and not moved for 10 minutes. Instead I claimed my T-shirt and medal, and some fruit & water, and then went to cheer for my brother in law and sister who were running the 10k.

A few hours later I'd forgotten my resolution to not run any more races for awhile, and Phil and I were discussing when we would run next.

Taking the scenic route

I live in a beautiful area. Since I started running I've gained an increased appreciation for the gorgeous views that are right outside my door. Last time I ran along the route that I consider "most scenic" I snapped a few photos with my camera phone.

This is the view starting out, and heading south. I'm about five minutes from my front door.



This is the view to the east.



A little further down.



This is about the halfway point for a 30 minute run. When I can smell the manure I know it's time to turn around.



Heading home, looking east.



And looking west.



I have to admit that it's a pretty amazing place, goats and all.

Friday run

This morning I ran for 45 minutes and went 3.3 miles. I was tired but running felt good.

I ran 45 minutes today, estimated my HR at 135 (no Garmin), and went 3.04 miles.

I ate an hour ahead of time (string cheese & chocolate milk) and felt pretty good. A little tired.

Tired legs

I ran tonight for 30 minutes, at 145 HR, and went 2.1 miles.

My legs felt tired, which was unexpected. I did fine and I'm glad I ran but I expect to be a little sore in the morning. Going to use some arnica tonight & hopefully wake up feeling great.

Monday run

I ran for 45 minutes, and tried to keep my HR at 135 although it wanted to go higher. I went 3.07 miles.

Tonight I ran for 30 minutes, went 2 miles. I took my pulse at the end and my heart rate was 150. I was shooting for 140 without the HR monitor.

I had intended to run for 45 minutes but our power was out all night & I was concerned about the kids being able to entertain the babies in the dark. They were arguing when we got home so it was probably a good thing we cut it short.

I'm still feeling pretty lousy, so maybe it's nothing to do with running.

******************************************************

I read in Chi Running that you can evaluate your run based on how you feel afterwards. If that's true, this was my poorest run yet.

I usually run in the evenings but I needed to go this morning, which meant that my legs were tired before I even left the house. I ran for 30 minutes, trying to keep my heart rate at 140. As it turned out it hovered between 145 and 150 the whole time. I ran 2.07 miles.

After last night's run I was nauseated the rest of the evening. I still felt poorly this morning so I didn't eat anything before my run. I was quite sick by the time I finished my run this morning, and that's when I remembered I didn't eat dinner last night either.

And to top it all off when I took off my shoes, I had Left socks on both feet. ;)

The good news is it can only get better tomorrow when I run.

Tonight's run

3.29 miles
HR 145 bpm
45 minutes

It was work but I felt good.

I ran 45 minutes tonight. I went 3.2 miles.

I didn't have the heart rate monitor when I went running tonight, but I did take my pulse twice. My target heart rate was 145 & my pulse was 150 the first time and 140 the second, so I think I was about on target.

I ran for 30 minutes & felt really good but I only went 2 miles. Oh well, at least I felt great.

I ran 45 minutes tonight and went 3.11 miles. I headed out too late, it was dark which made me nervous. I probably won't go that late again.

Ran 30 minutes with my heart rate at 145. I went 2.27 miles. I need to start running earlier in the day. I felt worse than death when I got home and I think it's due to the heat.

Nice and easy.

45 minutes. 3.16 miles.

Nothing to see here.

I didn't run today because I positively did not feel up to it this morning and the day just got crazier from there on out. Tonight I feel like I am coming down with something which just can't happen right now.

I have been very hungry these last few days, too. It occurred to me today it's probably because I've been running more frequently than before.

Happy foot.

My foot's not bothered me at all the last two days. Yea!

This morning I ran outdoors for 30 minutes. I tried to keep my heart rate at 145, which I was mostly able to do. I went 2.06 miles.

No goat, no hayfever, but I was a little tired & it was hot.

I usually run past the gas station & each time I think about stopping in and buying myself a treat.

Can I keep it, mom?

I ran for 45 minutes today. I went 2.78 miles. I tried to keep my heart rate at 135, unsuccessfully for the most part.

And then a goat followed me home. Seriously, right up to my back door.

June 9. 2007

Today's assignment: run for 30 minutes at 140 beats per minute

I struggled to keep my heart rate in the right spot but it was a good run. I went 2.25 miles.

June 8, 2007

This morning I ran for 45 minutes with my heart rate at 135 bpm. I went 3.09 miles, which is more than I ran on Wed so I was pleased.

June 7, 2007

This morning I ran for 30 minutes indoor at the local high school track. My assignment was to keep my heart rate at 140 beats per minute. I ran 2 miles. I could feel my foot a little more than yesterday but it was ok. In the past I've stopped running at the slightest twinge because I didn't want to make it worse, but that hasn't happened.

I felt pretty good.

Starting out

My first assignment was to run for 45 minutes, keeping my heart rate at 135 bpm. I generally run around 155, which I know is too high but I've found it nearly impossible to bring it down to my goal of 145.

I'm already a slow runner, so to bring it to 135 bpm I was jogging so slow that I think it would have been faster to walk. It took some real effort for the first 1/2 mile or so. But once I found my groove I started to realize just how good I felt.

I love to run, and I nearly always feel good but this was something else. I felt like I could have kept this pace forever. I could have carried on a conversation, which never would have been possible before. I didn't even feel a twinge in my foot until I was about a 1.5 miles into it, and it never got bad.

It still would have been easier to pick it up and move a little faster, but it was a good lesson to me to actually feel what running at 70% of my max heart rate should feel like. I forgot to mention, this is the first time I've run without any headphones either. In the beginning, this would have been impossible for me. (It wasn't until I got my iPod that I could actually stand to run at all.) But it wasn't bad. I just spoke an encouraging mantra, varying it with each lap around the track so that I wouldn't lose count.

I ran 2.75 miles in 45 minutes.

Coach

I've got a running coach. And I'm really excited.

Disheartened and disappointed

I’m more than a little bummed about my foot. I thought I was being so careful not to do anything that would result in getting injured. (Although I did forget to take my calcium pills most of the time.) I stopped running every day. I was good about not upping my miles too quickly. I ran slow. And then for reasons that still remain unknown to me, I woke up one morning and could hardly walk.

So during the last few weeks I’ve only run 3 times. Each time I stopped running after the first mile or so, because my foot was starting to hurt. The frustrating thing is that I’m not sure my foot is any better now than it was when it first happened. I can feel my fitness level dropping. Even that first mile is tougher than it was a few weeks ago. (Yes, I know I can go to the gym and use the stationary bike, and I do intend to, but getting to the gym requires much more effort than stepping out my front door, and it just hasn’t happened yet.)

I am missing races I had wanted to run, and DH is stepping up his training to prepare for a half marathon soon. Meanwhile, I can’t run around the block yet.

Bummed

I'm more than a little bit bummed. Last week I was so excited that I ran for 45 minutes, but my foot still hurts. Nothing bad, except that I'm afraid to run on it too much for fear of making it worse. It's been a full week now, and except for that lame run last week I haven't done anything. And we're going out of town tomorrow, which means it will be another week.

Foot pain & a cancelled race

Last week I ran for 45 minutes straight, which was awesome. I could have gone longer but decided to stop since I normally only go 30. The next day my foot was killing me. I could barely put weight on it. It looked normal, but I was worried that maybe I had a stress fracture. The following day it felt a little better but was swollen where it hurt (on the outside under my ankle bone) & a little discolored. That was day before yesterday & it’s almost back to normal now.* Today we had hoped to run a 5k at The Homestead Resort, but it was cancelled. We decided just to run our normal 3.6 miles around the neighborhood.

I don’t know whether it was the heat or the fact that we haven’t run since Tuesday, but we both felt awful. My foot held up ok although it’s a little sore now. We ended up cutting the run short because we felt so crummy. I’ve had another killer migraine all day & Phil is getting sick. We were talking about running a race Monday morning but honestly I don’t know if we will be up to it. I hope so.

*I told Phil I must be a “real runner” now since I was contemplating whether I could run on a foot that I could barely walk on.

Our first race!

Phil and I had our first race Saturday, a 5k. I’d been looking forward to it for at least a month, but all day Friday I had “pre race jitters”. I don’t know what I was uptight about, to be honest. I had no expectations, aside from finishing the race. Hard to mess that up when it’s only 3.1 miles. Phil wasn’t anxious in the least but the closer it got, the worse I felt. As it turned out it was a great experience. I ran faster than I’d expected, the views were fantastic, and I felt really good during and after. And then I was tired all day & ended up with a migraine. Still, I have no regrets. We’re going to try and run as many races as possible this summer, ideally every weekend.

Things I learned this time:

~ Eat well the night before because the morning of the race I won’t want to eat anything. (I choked down some eggs, though.)

~ 30 minutes into it feels FREAKING AWESOME.

~ 31 minutes into it feels freaking awesome except I feel like throwing up.

~ Having lots of support there makes a world of difference.

~ I need to do something to prevent future migraines. Maybe drink more water ahead of time?

I was fortunate to have my sisters, my mother and father in law, and some of my kids there cheering for me along the way. It was really a lot of fun.

Ignoring the voice.

I think it was the combination of 3 things that got me started running.

One was an online acquaintance - a runner - who told me she’s “always hated running”. That’s me. I figured if someone who always hated it had grown to love it, there was hope for me.

The second thing was Starling Fitness. Laura, the author, started running awhile back and I was living vicariously as her mileage climbed higher and higher. Her enthusiasm for the sport made me itching to run long before I started.

The third thing was the book, Running with Angels. I found it especially inspiring because it was written by a local woman who lost a lot of weight after joining Weight Watchers and taking up running. I read the book shortly after I started running, and at just the time I joined Weight Watchers. It was exciting to realize I wasn’t the only person who had weird thoughts and emotional ties to food. The author’s success was inspiring.

At our race this weekend I saw the author of the book. And she’s gained weight. She doesn’t appear to have gained it all back, but she did appear to have put on quite a bit of weight. Admittedly, I don’t know her circumstances. Maybe she just had a baby. Maybe she’s having thyroid trouble. There could be any number of reasons why she looked heavier than in her photos & I’m sure I will never know the real reason. But seeing one of the people who I found most inspiring slip from the pedestal unsettled me more than I would have guessed. And there’s that little voice in the back of my mind that says 6 months of running is nothing when weighed against 36 years of being unathletic. That little voice doesn’t believe I will truly succeed.

Foot pain

I was so excited last night. For the first time ever, I ran a full 45 minutes. The beautiful thing is that I could have kept going, but since I'd only been running 30 up until that point, I decided not to push it.

I felt great, nothing hurt, but then today I woke up and my foot is killing me. It looks fine but I can hardly put weight on it. I hope it's not a stress fracture.

30 glorious minutes

Although I intended to run for 30 minutes today, my original plan was to do it in 5 minute blocks followed by 1 minute of walking. When I headed out the door though, I was feeling frustrated and decided to take it out on my running. My running clothes were all in the laundry so I was wearing a cotton T-shirt, dance pants, and thick hiking socks. I was worried that the change in clothing would make it difficult to run (which didn’t happen, but BOY, WAS IT HOT!).

As it turned out, today’s run was easier than yesterday’s 28 minutes. I don’t normally run two days in a row, so it was a pleasant surprise. I normally have a stitch in my side before I’m even done with my warmup and today it didn’t happen until I’d been running for 25 minutes. I had a cracked femur 20 years ago which still aches from time to time, and it did today, but it really was hardly worth mentioning.

I ran the entire 30 minutes & now I know I’ll do it every time. It’s no longer a question of whether I’ll be able to do it, but rather how it will feel and what I’ll do when I’m done. It’s pretty exciting.

Today’s mileage: 3.3 miles

28 minutes

This morning I walked 5 minutes to warm up, then ran 28 minutes, then walked 11 minutes to cool down and reach 3.2 miles. For the first half of the run I was miserable as always. I sure wish it would get easier and that I wouldn’t struggle to keep going when I’d much rather give up. The last half of my run I was mentally composing a letter and the time passed without me paying much mind. I’ll be ready for the 5k in 1.5 weeks, and I will most likely be able to run the whole thing. But it will take me 45 minutes and honestly, I can probably walk faster than that.

Today’s Mileage: 3.2 miles

25 minutes

Phil & I went running this morning. For me it was the start of week 7 in the Couch to 5k program. I ran for 25 minutes (jogged is probably more accurate) and it. was. hard. I spent most of the run wondering just why it was that I’d picked running for my sport. I’ve never been a good runner. Why did I think anything had changed?

I was and still am a little dismayed at how difficult it was, this jump from 20 to 25 minutes. And when it was over I was ready to collapse into a gelatinous blob on the floor. But it didn’t take long before I was feeling refreshed & energetic, and trying to remember why I’d been so miserable running.

25 minutes

Yippee! I'm up to 25 solid minutes of running. I can hardly believe it myself.

20 minutes without stopping

I was a tad nervous about today’s run. My last one was 8 minutes of running, 5 minutes of walking, and another 8 minutes of running. So today I just had to run during that middle part.

My body felt old and achy for the first three minutes. I wonder if that ever goes away. After that I kind of found my groove, but I admit, it was a VERY slow groove. I did the whole 20 minutes though & I wasn’t miserable in the least. By the end several places were not feeling awesome, particularly my side, the metatarsals in my right foot, and the ligaments that connect my femur to my pelvis. But here it is the end of the day and most of that has dissipated.

I’m very psyched about being able to run the entire 20 minutes. It’s hard to believe that a week ago I had never run more than 5.

I’m supposed to go back to running and walking intervals for my next two workouts. I will probably follow the plan, but I may skip ahead to running 25 minutes.

I did it! I ran for 20 minutes without stopping.

Up until today I've only run 8 minutes at a time. My last run was run 8, walk 5, run 8, walk 5. I never would have guess I would come this far this quickly. I am so psyched!

Running update

Today I started week 5 of the Couch to 5k running program. After a 5 minute warm up I ran 8 minutes, walked 5, ran 8 more, and then walked for 5 minutes to cool down. On Wed or Thursday I am scheduled to run 20 minutes without stopping. Eek.

Miles today: approximately 2.7 (my Garmin battery died before I finished).

Not in a good mood.

Phil and I went running this morning. It was hard. Pretty much every part of my body hurt. We were running in 5 minute spurts and granted, we didn’t keel over on the ground, but that’s about the best thing I can say about it. My 5k race is in 3 weeks and I have no idea how I’m going to be running 30 minutes at that point.

You don't want to run behind me.

I’ve been thinking about my run this morning. When I started out it was just as hard as any other run. My legs felt like they were made of lead and I was running so slowly, I’m surprised I was moving at all. It didn’t help that I was running into the wind. I had planned to do the 8 minute spurts and if I hadn’t run that 10 minutes last week I don’t know if I would have believed my body could do it. But I knew that no matter how hard 5 minutes felt it was nothing because I’d already run twice that.

At some point I realized that while it wasn’t effortless running, it had become easier. I wonder whether I would have hit that point 5-10 minutes into a run all the way back in November (when I started)? My next run is 20 minutes straight, so I guess I’ll find out.

I read an article in Runner’s World magazine about a man who competes in Triple Ironman races. A Triple Ironman consists of a 7.2 mile swim, a 336 mile bike ride, and running 78.6 miles. One thing he said really stood out to me. When he’s running/biking/swimming he doesn’t allow himself to have ANY negative thoughts. If a thought that is less than positive pops into his mind he immediately follows it up with a positive thought. Thinking positive thoughts keeps those feel good chemicals swirling around in his brain & he’s able to enjoy the race.

So I’ve tried to implement that in my workouts. When I run, and I feel like stopping, I picture the fat melting away from my body and dropping to the ground as I run past. If I were to turn around I’d see a trail of gooey fat. Gross, but it helps.

Couch to 5k - week 5 here I come!

Tomorrow I start week 5 of the Couch to 5k program. I'm making progress, although not as quickly as I'd like.

Life is a beautiful thing

What started out as an awful run turned into my best run yet. I got out there and started running, but pretty much like every other time my run started off with negative thoughts swirling around in my brain. Why was I doing this? Was I ever going to be good at it? Would it ever feel good? Would I ever be able to breathe and run at the same time? Keep in mind this was going on when I was about 1 minute into the first 3 minute segment. I was feeling very discouraged, as I often do, because my next goal is to run for 30 minutes or a 5k without stopping.

Let me stop here to remind myself along with you all that 6 weeks ago running for 90 seconds was tough. On the one hand I’m amazed that I’m now running 3-5 minutes without stopping because THAT seemed so out of reach in the beginning. I spend most of my time on the other hand, though, thinking that running 3 minutes is not remotely close to running for 30.

When I started into my 5 minute segment I was feeling a little bit better. Not great, but 5 minutes didn’t seem TOO much harder than 3. The negative thoughts were still swirling. Was it really worth it? Would I ever be a REAL runner? etc.

My last segment was 5 minutes. I was feeling more positive. I was feeling like I can do this 5k. I was feeling pretty good about life. And at the end of the 5 minutes I decided to keep running. I just wanted to see if I could run for another 5 minutes. AND I DID. If you know me & if you live in my head when I run you know this is possible proof that my body has been taken over by an alien life form. I ran (jogged) that extra 5 minutes and it honestly wasn’t any harder. I was keeping my mind on my Chi Running form, and thinking that it felt good and it did. IT FELT REALLY GOOD. I could have gone on a little longer, but I was feeling pretty positive and didn’t want to jinx myself.

And now I know that next week when I bump the running up to 8 minute segments, I’ll be able to do it, no questions asked. Life is a beautiful thing.

Running

I haven’t been able to run since Monday which is really frustrating me. Each day I think I’ll sneak in some time to go to the gym, at the very least, because they have daycare. But I haven’t managed it. And I don’t know how the little ones will do at daycare. They’ve been before, of course, but I am always worried that they’ll start crying and pitching a fit when I go to drop them off. So I don’t try it. Today is a tough week, running wise, in the Couch to 5k training program, so possibly on a subconscious level I am procrastinating. I don’t think so, though, I’m just overworked and exhausted. Fortunately it’s almost Friday.

Didn't want to run today.

Today begins Week 3 of the Couch to 5k program I’ve been following. Week 2 had me running 90 seconds, which wasn’t easy, but it was doable. Week 3 calls for 3 minutes, and I honestly didn’t know whether my body could do it.

My sweet husband decided to go running with me this morning. I was very grateful for the offer of moral and physical support. Although it was tough, I did manage to do it. (OK, I do realize I sound silly blathering on about running for 3 minutes, especially considering I’ve been running for 5 months now. But trust me, this body hasn’t done anything remotely athletic in over 3 years.)

So I know I can do this, and I’m excited that I am making progress. Mostly I’m positive about running, but sometimes I get unhappy that everything is taking longer than I thought, and is proving harder than I thought. Some days it’s hard to believe I’ll ever be able to run several miles without stopping.

I can do anything for 60 seconds.

I switched from my old style of running - run until something hurts and then walk until it stops - to the Couch to 5k training program from CoolRunning. Last week had me running for 60 seconds, then walking for 90. This was harder than it sounds! The first day was very discouraging for me. I was feeling discomfort long before I hit 60 seconds and thought that didn’t bode well for my hopes of running a 5k in May. But by the end of week 1 the 60 seconds was no big deal at all, which renewed my confidence. And I learned a valuable lesson that week. I learned that I could push past the discomfort (not pain) and when I did, it usually dissipated. I realized that many of my perceived limits are mental, not physical.

Couch to 5k

I've decided to start training with Cool Runnings Couch to 5K program. Last week was Week One. It was harder than it sounds! But I definitely saw the progress between the first workout and the third.

Today's run was challenging, but I felt great afterward.

Chi Running vs the Pose Method

I found this link today with Danny Dreyer's response to the question about the differences between Chi Running and the Pose Method

Today was less than inspiring.

I am getting better at running, in that I run at least 50% of my workout now. I have to keep reminding myself that when I started back in November I couldn’t run more than a couple feet, and even that just about did me in. So I am indeed making progress, but today I was feeling very disheartened.

I run at the high school track, which probably isn’t the best environment for feeling good about myself. There I am, surrounded by people half my age and weight, and they run like gazelles, combining speed and amazing grace. I plod along, stopping to catch my breath after running for less than 5 minutes, and wondering if I’ll ever look like that. I don’t mean lean with a rock hard body, although that would certainly be nice. ;) I mean I envy the way they look almost as if they are dancing, the way their feet barely seem to touch the ground.

Because losing weight would be fantastic, it would be more than awesome. Getting fit would be even greater. But the ultimate goal is to run 26.2 miles and some days I wonder if I’ll ever get there.

Missing my iPod.

I can't find my nano. It's ridiculous; I only use the thing when I run and then I promptly bring it in the house and upload my data to the Nike+ website. I had it when I ran last Thursday, and I haven't been able to find it since.

It's a little frightening how much I miss it. Running isn't the same without it. Sure, I can borrow my daughter's iPod and get the music, but I have no idea how far I'm running. I have no idea how fast I'm going. And I am going to lose the Nike+ challenge.

That visual feedback, that little thrill I get when I plug my nano into my laptop and see my run in vibrant neon green on the screen, that is missing. And sure, maybe I was only coming in 26th in the challenge, but it still made me feel good that I was ahead of so many other people. That gadgetry is what helps me stay motivated.



So until I can afford a new nano, I'm in mourning and running just isn't the same.

There are good runs, and there are not so good runs. Today was the latter. I haven't been able to determine why some days I can run with no pain and then days like today my body hurts almost from the get go. I've started keeping a tube of Icy Hot in the car so that I have it handy at all times. Both today and yesterday I felt like I was hobbling along rather than running. The pain rarely lasts more than a day, so I know its nothing serious but I wish I could figure out what is causing it. Its got to be my form, but I feel like that's improving as my core muscles get stronger.

I did it! I made my first goal.

Let me backtrack. Last weekend the track that I usually run at was closed and I had to run outdoors. It's pretty chilly here so I've been running inside. That day the weather was nice but I wasn't having a great running day. A lot of the track was covered with snow, & I was cold, so maybe that was part of it. But I just couldn't find my groove. I walked a lot more than I ran, and for the first time I started to think maybe I will never achieve my running goals. It seemed like I'd been working so long and not seeing very much progress.

Then a few days later I went back to the regular indoor track and did one full lap without stopping, right off the bat. I know that to a runner, that's no big deal, but for me it was HUGE progress. I was on Cloud 9 for days.

I'm still so so far away from being able to run a 5k & I worry that I won't be there by May for the race I'd like to run but seeing that little success brought back my hope and determination.

So this is what a good run feels like.

I have read that even a bad day is a good day if it starts with a good run. Ok, so my run today probably doesn’t qualify, but I swear I got a taste of that runner’s high.

Today was the first day that I ran more than I walked. In fact I ran a good lot of the time. It was pretty awesome. I think about the first time I ran, back in November. It felt like I was sucking wind. After just a few feet, my throat was raw, my legs hurt, my side hurt, and I’m pretty sure every other body part hurt. I’ve been running pretty religiously the past month and there have been times I wondered if I would ever really be a runner. I could see some gains - faster pace, the ability to run farther and longer - but they have been so microscopic that it didn’t feel like I was really going anywhere. Today that all changed.

Today I felt like a runner. Running was easier than it’s ever been. I felt like I had really good form a lot of the time. When I did slow down to walk, I’d get right back into running after walking only partway around the track. My goal today was to run 2 miles. I set a goal in January of 15 miles and I was at 13. I wanted to get 2 miles in tonight in case something happens and I can’t get out tomorrow. By the time I got to 1.8 miles I was beat. Nothing hurt, which is amazing, but I was high on endorphins and starting to feel exhausted. I didn’t think I could do even another lap, so I veered off the track and went to put on my jacket. Here’s where the marathon analogy comes in. I told myself I only had 0.2 miles to go. I decided I was going to do that 0.2 even if it killed me. (Why is a marathon 26.2 rather than 26 miles anyway?) I made myself walk the last 0.2 miles so I could make my goal and I did it. I did it, and I am darn proud, although I probably shouldn’t have. I felt dizzy and wobbly and kind of like throwing up when I was done, but I made my goal.

I guess that makes me a runner.

I need new shoes.

I still have a fair amount of shin pain when I run. I'm a wimp so when it gets bad enough I quit. I'd rather that than get injured. I have no doubt that when I get really comfortable with the Chi Running form some of that will go away, but I know I need new shoes.

I have a friend who practices barefoot running with shoes. She began after reading this article in Men's Health (long but worth the read). My friend runs in Nike Frees.

I admit I've been eyeing these shoes for awhile. They look so cool, and hey, even Paula Radcliffe wears them. In fact the only things keeping me from buying them are (1) I'm broke, and (2) I hear a lot about how Nikes aren't great shoes. The runners I know don't like them. But I figure they're not famous because they're crappy, so when I have the money I'll at least try on a pair and see what I think.

Different this time.

I just finished reading the most amazing book. The author’s website is Running With Angels. This woman was in my head. All the weird thoughts I have about food, she had. All the desperation, she felt it. It has been very therapeutic for me to read of her experiences and try and follow along with my real life.

She lost 100 lbs with WW and exercise, so I joined WW. I am eating sooo much less and staying within my points. I haven’t been able to do this in years.

She started out unable to run more than a few steps, and she runs marathons now. I am a beginning, slow runner & I can feel that I am getting stronger each time. I’ve always disliked running, now I do it every day. If I don’t, I’m miserable and antsy. As an added bonus running is causing me to think of food as fuel and not comfort anymore. It’s incredible. I didn’t think I could do it, not deep down in my heart. Now I don’t think anything can stop me.

All those other times I’ve tried to lose weight, it never lasted long. I have never been this committed before. I don’t know why it’s different, but it is.

Here is a good article for beginning runners, or people who are thinking about running.

Yesterday I went running. I couldn’t get the form right and after 3 laps my lower legs were really hurting. I was able to run both sides of the lap though, and walked just around the curve at the top and bottom of the track. So I’m making progress. I just wish I could do it without it hurting.

According to the Chi Running book, it takes 1-3 months to learn the form. I hope that practice makes perfect because when I’m in the groove, running is awesome. Nothing hurts and I just feel good. Most of the time though, something must be off because everything hurts. By the end of my workout my legs want to give out and I’m hoping I make it to the car. My knees especially hurt.

I’m getting better though. Yesterday I was able to run the length of the track without stopping. I’d run one side, and then walk around the loop back to my starting point, then run again. It’s somewhat embarrassing, that I’ve been doing this so long and I still can’t even run one full lap. Maybe I could if my life depended on it, but I don’t know. I can see that I’m able to run faster and farther each time, so I won’t complain. It’s my hope that by not going all out I won’t get burned out and give up. Because I don’t know if I’ve ever stuck with it this long.

My January goal is to run 15 miles and I’m up to 9.6 so far. It feels great.

My running goals

I thought it would be a good idea to list my running goals here, both short and long term. (No laughing!)

1. I will be able to run one lap around the track without stopping.
2. I will be able to run three laps around the track without stopping.
3. I will be able to run one mile without stopping.
4. I will run the 5k Freedom Festival race in July (without stopping?)
5. I will run a marathon in the summer or fall of 2008 OR I will do a biathalon in the summer or fall of 2008.

I admit it. I don’t understand the Nike+ website. I love uploading my runs, and I love looking at the little graphs and such, but none of it makes any sense to me. Runs that I know were 8-10 minutes per mile appear to be 17 minutes per mile. When I click on the icon to compare my runs it sometimes works and more often does not. How it chooses which runs to compare is beyond me. I’m frustrated because I don’t understand how to use the site, and as far as I can tell there are no instructions.

Today I tried to incorporate some of the Chi Running focuses and it was pretty neat. When I was able to get into the right form, running really did feel almost effortless (just like the book claims). My time also went from 10 min/mile to 8 min/mile, so that was exciting. A lot of the time I just couldn’t get the form correct and so for most of my run/walk my knees hurt, my shins, hurt, my side ached, and my abs hurt. (That’s another thing about Chi Running, you use your core muscles instead of your legs. Which is cool but I don’t think I have any core muscles to use.) It was exciting that I was able to run further and faster than I have before now.

I’m pretty proud of myself that I have kept this up and I am getting better every day.

Much ado about running.

According to the Chi Running book, it takes 1-3 months to learn the form. I hope that practice makes perfect because when I’m in the groove, running is awesome. Nothing hurts and I just feel good. Most of the time though, something must be off because everything hurts. By the end of my workout my legs want to give out and I’m hoping I make it to the car. My knees especially hurt.

I’m getting better though. Yesterday I was able to run the length of the track without stopping. I’d run one side, and then walk around the loop back to my starting point, then run again. It’s somewhat embarrassing, that I’ve been doing this so long and I still can’t even run one full lap. Maybe I could if my life depended on it, but I don’t know. I can see that I’m able to run faster and farther each time, so I won’t complain. It’s my hope that by not going all out I won’t get burned out and give up. Because I don’t know if I’ve ever stuck with it this long.

My January goal is to run 15 miles and I’m up to 9.6 so far. It feels good.

I’m doing pretty good with the running, meaning that I do it at least every other day, often every day. I’m still only halfway through the Chi Running book, but I can tell that I’m running more efficiently. My short term goal is to run one lap without stopping, which I still can’t do. My longer term goal is to run 3 miles without stopping.

Chi Running

I've been reading the book and today was the first day I started to implement some of what I'm learning. I focused on the first of 4 steps, my form. I tried to make my column (core) strong and straight, and it was harder than it sounds. After 8 babies my abdominal muscles are very weak, and just a few minutes into it my abs were starting to ache. My legs did much better though. My shins and knees didn't hurt until the very end.

The last couple of times I’ve run my legs have really hurt afterward. I’ve been going every other day to give myself time to recover. Today my shins were hurting so much that I mostly stuck to walking, and I ended my workout 10 minutes earlier than I normally would.

I’ve been checking out the Chi Running website which claims that with proper form, it’s possible to run without injury or pain. From what I can tell the change in posture means that you move forward using your core muscles and not your legs. It’s an interesting idea. My sister told me about it once before, but she’s been running for so long that she hasn’t adopted the new form, so she couldn’t comment a whole lot on it.

I have the book and I’m going to start reading it over the weekend. I imagine that a lot of my pain is because of my weight and the fact that I’m still new at this. If I can do it without pain though, that will make it that much easier to stick with.

Shin splints

I haven't been running long and my shins are already hurting. I've been running (jogging) on alternate days to allow my legs recovery time. Yesterday my shins hurt so much I spent most of my workout walking, and even then I quit early because I was in a lot of pain.

My sister was telling me about the book Chi Running, so I picked up a copy and will start reading this weekend.

Running

All my life I've wanted to be a runner, and all my life I've hated running. Recently I was reading a blog of an acquaintance of mine. She's been running for a year and lost an insane amount of weight, I'm thinking around 80 lbs. In her blog she said that she had always been a chubby kid, had always hated running. That gave me hope.

Laura's blog inspired me to get the Nike+ iPod kit. This time around, I know I'm going to make it. I'm really starting to enjoy running, and I understand why people say its addicting.
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I'm not very good at it yet. I can't run very long or very far without stopping to walk. But each time I run I find I'm a little faster, or I can run a little further. I'm really psyched.

So I've linked to a couple of running blogs in the side bar, so that I will remember to read them regularly for inspiration.

I like this.

I'm getting better at this running thing. I still have to stop and walk alot of the time, but I can run faster and for longer stretches. My first goal is to be able to run 3 miles without stopping.

I love Nike+ and I love seeing the graph of my runs.

Nike + iPod. I love it. I hate it.

I’ve been using the Nike+ kit with my iPod nano for a month or so now and I have this love/hate relationship going on with it. For the most part I love it. It keeps track of the distance, time, and average pace of my runs. I can listen to my music and any time I hit the center button - which is easy to find with the Nike armband - I hear my stats in my ear. When I come home I upload the info via iTunes - again, very easy to do - and the Nike+ site graphs my run and compares it to previous runs.

The best part is that I can participate in challenges with other Nike+ users which motivate me to run more frequently and further. This is one great product, especially considering it only costs $30.

Last week I used my nano just like always and everything was fine. When I came home and tried to upload the data, there was nothing on my nano. My last 3 runs, which I hadn’t yet uploaded, had disappeared, along with my music. I called Apple support & even took it into the Apple store but nothing could be retrieved. I’ve spent several hours over the past few days trying to get more music onto my nano. It poses a problem that we use iTunes on 3 different computers, and they don’t all have the same operating system.

I’ve lost some of the songs I loved and can’t access them in iTunes unless I pay again. But I have some music on there now, and I was able to get out and run again today.

I’ve never been a runner. I’ve always wished I was, but I have always hated running. This time around I kind of like it, and that’s pretty exciting.

Today was my best run ever, as far as time and distance. My legs hurt, though. They were hurting as soon as I stopped running (and during, now that I think of it).