8.5 Miles.

Wind, oh wind...why must you torture me so?  (Queue Christina Aguilera's "Fighter")  Because, dear running girl, it's the resistance that makes you stronger!

This morning's run was 8.5 miles.  I will never understand how I can have the wind fiercely blowing against my face when I'm going one direction, and when I turn and head back in the opposite direction, there is no wind at all?  The thing that kept me going for the first 5 miles was knowing that soon I'd be heading back home and would have the help of the wind pushing me forward...no such luck.  Nevertheless, it was a decent run.  The sun even came out for a few minutes near the end of my run.  I averaged about 11:40 min/mile, so I finished in a little over an hour and a half.  Not too bad, considering yesterday afternoon I had a cold hit me like a ton of bricks, and woke up this morning with lymph nodes the size of golf  balls and nose that wants to run faster than I do!  After my run, I did 10 minutes of Pilates while I filled the tub with ice water for just a little more self-torture.  ;)  Well, that's my longest run for this week of recovery.  Up next week: a 22 miler, then I start my taper!!

Aahhh...dreaming of Sunny St. George (or any other warm and bright place)...

Recovery week continues...

This morning I did a cross training workout, since tomorrow will be my "long" run day.  I started out with 30 minutes on the elliptical, followed by 30 minutes walking on the treadmill.  For the first 15 minutes on the treadmill, I used 5 pound hand weights to do bicep curl reps.  I finished up by spending about 15 minutes with my friends foam roller and exercise ball.  The past couple of days my hip pain has seemed to flare up again, but after my workout this morning, it's feeling okay and I'm looking forward to my 8 miler tomorrow.

6 miles.

Do I look like the Dog Whisperer??  The past few weeks I've experienced on several of my runs, random dogs joining along side me and sticking with me for the duration of my run.  It's very annoying, to say the least.  It's not that I'm a dog-hater, I mean, we have a family dog that I love, but I don't like strange dogs approaching me while I'm out running.  You just never know what to expect.  Even when they're friendly enough, they are a nuisance; I'm sure people driving by who have to swerve to avoid hitting the dumb dog that runs down the middle of the road think I'm the annoying runner with the dog not on a leash.  Anyway, today's six mile run I had a Benji-type dog pacing me.  When I arrived back at my house, it came right up to the porch with me, despite my demands that it "Go home!"  I checked it's tag, went in the house and called city hall with the dog's name and phone number and asked them to call the owner and tell them to come get it from our property.  Then I went upstairs and was doing my Pilates workout when I heard a weird screeching noise coming from outside, and my husband heading out, yelling at something.  I went downstairs and found that the dog had killed one of our chickens on our back porch, and when Chris had opened the door to shew it away, our little dog "escaped" and was chasing down the road after Benji!  Well, Chris was able to get our dog, Zipper, to finally come back (he had to carry him), but now we're down another chicken, thanks to the dang stray dog!  Attention dog owners:  Keep your pets tied up or contained!

Enough on my rant against dogs and negligent dog owners...I warmed up this morning with 10 minutes of Yoga, then did my 6 mile run in just over an hour.  I also did 30 minutes of Pilates.

Miscellaneous workout Monday.

This morning, since this is my "recovery" week, and since it is snowing outside, I decided to stay inside for my workout.  I started out with a warm up of 10 minutes of Yoga, then 10 minutes on the elliptical.  Then I did a 30 minute interval run on the treadmill, followed by 30 more minutes on the elliptical.  After that, I cooled down with an additional 10 minutes of walking on the treadmill and 15 minutes of Pilates.

4 miles.

This morning I did a 4 mile run, in the dark!  I was awake and out the door by 6am, went to the park and did a four mile run using a flashlight to guide my way.  Now I'm rushing out the door with all the kids to make it in time for a niece's baptism.  Enjoy your Saturday, everyone!

Rest day (sort of)...

Today is a rest day after yesterday's long run.  I did do 30 minutes on the elliptical and then I walked on the treadmill for another 30 minutes.  I should probably also do some Yoga or Pilates, and maybe I will still get that in before lunch...

13 miles...

Ahem....I'm hoping no one notices that I said 13 miles, instead of the 14 I posted yesterday that I would be doing.  As I said earlier, I had to switch my long run day to Thursday because of my husband's work schedule.  Then wouldn't you know it, he got called in to go to court today, on his day off, and I had to rearrange my run again so I could take over with Nicolas.  As soon as I dropped the older kids off at school, I headed out for my run.  I got in about 7 decent miles before heading back home to put Nick in the jogger and go to the park to finish the rest of my run.  My plan was to do another 7, but my legs just weren't cooperating today.  I started out feeling great.  I mean, I ran those first 7 no problem.  But by around mile 12 I was really feeling it - my legs were just out of power.  I had fueled on an energy bar and electrolyte drink, but I just couldn't find it in me to do that last mile, especially trying to push 50 pounds worth of kid and jogging stroller, so I headed home and took an ice bath.  Normally I would feel like it was a failed run because I didn't do exactly what was on my schedule, but today I am taking into account that my recovery from my last long run was too short, and 13 miles is still a great, long run!  So, today I'm cutting myself some slack.

Cross-training day.

This morning I did a varied workout.  I started out with 30 minutes on the elliptical, then I moved on to the treadmill.  I did 25 minutes, walking for 5 minutes, then pushing the pace up to a sprint for 1 minute, then back to walking for 5 minutes, repeated 4 times.  Then I got back on the elliptical and did a different 30 minute program on there.  Starting this week I've had to switch up my schedule again, because my husband's work schedule has changed which are his days off.  So now, he is off Tue - Thurs, and he works on Saturdays, which means I need to change which day I do my long run.  Thursday will now be my long run day, at least until his schedule changes again.  :)  That means that tomorrow I will be doing a 14 miler, and for some reason it doesn't quite feel like enough recovery time since my 20 miles last Saturday, but I'm actually feeling pretty good physically, so I think it will be fine.

4 miles, then retreat.

This morning I woke up sore and stiff, and I have two toenails that are hurting bad since my long run a few days ago, but I was determined to get out there for my run and keep a positive attitude.  Then I looked out the window and saw this...

Okay, no problem.  I strapped on my YakTrax and hit the road.  I thought maybe it would be refreshing to run in the snow, that is until the wind started blowing and the snow that was falling turned into ice pellets pelting me in the face.  I made it four miles, then I decided to call it good and go home.  I mean, being positive is great and all, but let's face it...running in this stuff sucks.  I am so ready for warmer weather.  Ugh.  When I got home I did a 45 minute Pilates/Yoga blend DVD.  Now I'm going to go do an ice bath ~ thank you, Rebecca!  ;)



6 miles, and my legs are so mad.

I have been very sore since my 20 miler on Saturday.  Yesterday I could barely walk up and down the stairs, my quads were hurting so much.  I wasn't too sure how this morning's run would go, but I did 10 minutes of Yoga stretches before heading to the park.  I really had to push myself at first, but once I got going I didn't notice the soreness any more.  After the 6 miles, I came home and did 15 minutes of Pilates.

20 miles!!

Today's run was mostly possible because of my dutiful and loving husband.  I woke up around 5:45am, ate 1/2 a banana and a breakfast bar, took some Excedrin, did 10 minutes of Yoga, then 5 minutes on the elliptical.  After all of that, I woke up my husband who drove me up the canyon so I could start my 20 mile run at the top of Buckskin Road, where the Pocatello Marathon route begins.  The first 10 miles were glorious: no walking breaks, the sun coming up over the mountains, 35 degrees, no sounds but the birds chirping and my music playing - I felt really good.  At the halfway point, I decided I needed to remove my jacket, so I stopped for about 1-2 minutes while I rearranged my various gear and tied my jacket around my waist.  I started to run again, but by miles 12-13, the weather had suddenly taken a turn for the worse.  The wind started howling, and I started to feel a few snow flurries.  I stopped again to put my jacket back on, then resumed running.  From then on out, I did take a few more walking breaks, a couple of times due to extreme fatigue in my leg muscles, once because I was feeling a little bit like I might faint and decided I'd better drink some of my hydration/electrolyte drink, and a couple more times because of the crazy, strong wind.  When I had a little less than 4 miles to go, I called my husband and told him what time and where to pick me up, then I just tried to run as much as I could the rest of the way.  My husband came a few minutes earlier than I had expected, so when he picked me up I was at 19 miles.  We went into town and had something to eat at IHOP with the kids, then when we came home about an hour later, I jumped on the treadmill and did another mile - I had to reach that 20 mile mark!  I was actually quite glad Chris "rescued" me a mile short, because the cold wind was just about to do me in, and doing that last mile on the treadmill felt much more refreshing.  Now I look forward to relaxing the rest of the day away - especially since it's still snowing outside.

Rest day.

This morning I woke up and did 45 minutes of Yoga.  No cardio today, since I want to be fully rested and ready for tomorrow's 20 mile long run.  :)

4 miles.

Like I said, an easy short run of 4 miles today.  I went to the park for my run.  This time I put an extra layer on Nicolas so he wouldn't get cold, and he fell asleep and slept the whole time!  When I got home I did some simple stretches, and now I have to head into town to pick up some things for Cub Scouts tomorrow.

Mid-week workout.

This morning I did a little cross training.  I started out with 35 minutes of Pilates, then I did 30 minutes on the elliptical and finally 30 minutes of walking on the treadmill at an incline.  I have one more short run this week, a four miler which I will do tomorrow, then I get a rest day before my big 20 mile long run on Saturday.  Looking forward to it.

Guest blogger article...

I've recently had my first opportunity to be a guest blogger!  Go read my post on www.acehealth.org and be sure and leave your comments so I know what you think.  Thanks to Bob Mauer and his blog Diet, Wellness, and Nutrition Journal for giving me the opportunity to share some of my thoughts.  Also, check out the link on the right of this page for a list of cholesterol lowering foods ~ good stuff!  Happy running!  :)

5 miles...and then some.

My schedule for today called for a 7 mile run.  It wasn't raining, which was nice, and the temperature was right around 40, so I wrapped Nick up in a blanket and hat and off we went to the park.  Starting at around 4 miles, Nick started to complain he was cold.  It was pretty windy, and I think that's what was bothering him because to me, 40 degrees is the perfect running temperature.  Anyway, by the time I got to about 5 miles, I was feeling bad that he was still saying he was cold, so I headed back home.  I got on the treadmill and did a 30 minute interval run to make up the difference, and then I also did 40 minutes on the elliptical.  To cool down I did 10 minutes of Yoga.

5 mile rain-run.

Here we are, my boy and I, after our wet 5 miler this morning.  He stayed nice and dry under the canopy of his jogger, but me...not so much.  Still, a good run.  I warmed up with 10 minutes of Yoga before heading out, ran 5 miles at the park then did Jillian Michael's 30 minute Yoga Meltdown DVD after my run.  This week I will be on my own with Nick for all of my runs, except my long run on Saturday.  Here's to hoping the rain goes away...honestly, I'm not too optimistic because the forecast looks pretty wet for the next few days. So we'll call it good training for race day unpredictability

8.5 mile run.

Another beautiful day, with mild temperatures and plenty of sunshine.  I warmed up before my run this morning with 10 minutes of Yoga and then a few minutes on the elliptical to get the juices flowing.  I walked for a couple of minutes, then started my run.  I ran the entire 8.5 miles, making full use of my mantras and positive affirmations.  I finished with about 1/4 mile walking to cool down and did a few stretches when I got home.  All in all, this week has been one of the most successful in a while, as far as my training goes.  I was able to do all my runs, fully and out on the road or at least at the park.  Right now, I am a happy runner!  :)

Rest day.

This morning I woke up with a headache, probably due to the rainstorm we had last night - the high humidity always messes with my head.  So, it took me a bit to get going, but I did get in 45 minutes on the elliptical since it's a non-running day.  Now we need to get ready to go to Scouts, but it's another beautiful, sunny day and I'm hoping to get out and "play" with the kids later.

4 miles, and ~ The jacket came off!!!

Yep, that's right folks...I had to remove my jacket while on my 4 mile run this morning - it was that warm.  It's been a long time since I've had to deal with this issue, though I'm not complaining.  My sister-in-law and her family are visiting today, so I was able to leave Nicolas at home while I went on my run.  It was great to be in the sun, sweating, running.  When I downloaded my Garmin info, it said I averaged a pace of 10:50 min/mile, which is pretty dang good for me and how things have been going with my leg pain issues.  It's amazing what great weather and a boost in mood can do for energy level!

6 mile Wednesday.

Well, the weather wasn't fully cooperative, with a little more snow last night, but the temperatures were mild enough that it was a wet, short lived snow.  So, I tucked Nick in tightly into the jogger, then headed to the park for my run.  There were a few slick spots, but it wasn't too bad.  I walked there to warm up, then did my 6 miles and walked home.  After my run I did 35 of Pilates.

Cross-Training day.

Nothing too exciting about today's workout.  I warmed up with 10 minutes of Yoga, then did 10 minutes of walking on the treadmill followed by 30 minutes on the elliptical and then another 10 minutes of walking.  It snowed (a lot) last night, so I'm keeping my fingers crossed that it warms up enough to melt it away before tomorrow so I can do my run outside with Nicolas in the jogger.  :)

5 miles.

A little sore today from Saturday's long run, but I felt good about going out for a 5 miler this morning.  It was cold, but I can feel spring coming...it's on the horizon, I just know it.  When I got home from my run, I did some stretching.  I wanted to do some Yoga also, but it's my husband's day off today, so instead of doing the Yoga, he lured me in to watch a couple episodes of Grey's Anatomy before we head into town to run errands.  I can always do Yoga tomorrow...;)

14 miles ~ ♫ Don't Stop me now, 'cause I'm havin' a good time...♫

Long run day and I did 14 miles.  I did an out and back run, starting out around 7am and getting home around 9:50am.  I wore my knee brace and warmed up with a couple of minutes on the elliptical to loosen up my hips and knees.  I'm stoked because I ran the whole thing, no walking breaks at all.  I mean, not the fastest run of course, but I used my positive affirmations and mantras to keep me going through rough patches, and just got it done.  I even had enough energy afterward to take the kids to the park so they could ride their bikes, while my husband and I walked a couple of laps around the track.

Let it snow...

This morning I did another indoor workout.  I began with 30 minutes on the elliptical and followed that with a 45 minute interval run on the treadmill.  Lastly, I did a 35 minute Pilates DVD.  Only 11 weeks to go until the marathon!

5 miles.

This morning, though a little chilly (about 22 degrees), I put Nicolas in his jogger and we headed over to the park for my run.  There was one section of the track that still had a layer of snow on it, but it was only about 15-20 feet long, so whenever I got to that section I would walk the stroller through it then resume running.  I did 5 miles, though I think Nick was cold and ready to come home around 2 miles!  Think Spring...think Spring...:)

Four miles and some other stuff.

This morning I did an indoor workout.  I started out with 30 minutes on the elliptical, then I did an hour on the treadmill.  I ran for a little over half of that, then walked the rest for a total of 4 miles.  It's a sunny day today and the forecast calls for temps in the 40's, so after lunch I'm going to try and get to the park with Nicolas for a walk.