Another Best Pace and Distance!

Steve left this morning for NY and I knew I needed to run before Thursday, so Lesley and I met at Ocee last night and ran together. It was her first day of running week 4 (running for five minutes at a time) and she and I stayed together for 99% of our run.

I felt pretty good starting out and I just realized that it's all mental. I've got to stay focused and know that I CAN and WILL get through each run. 

When we finished, I looked at my log and it said, "Best Pace and Distance!" I was really surprised! I was pushing myself more, but not until the last cycle... here's my progress so far:

I don't know how it's the best pace and distance... but I'll take it.

I'll be running again on Thursday, since Steve doesn't get home until late on Wednesday. Lesley and I discussed trying to run earlier (6:30/7:00) since it's getting dark earlier and earlier. Last night, there were NO lights on at Ocee and thankfully, we went at 7:30 instead of at 8. We finished at 8, it was very very dark.

I'm still not sure about week five, but I'm going to try it. I figure, I won't know until I try. Running for 20 minutes without a break makes NO sense to me, but I'm willing to see what happens.

It's amazing to think that I've been running for three days a week for a solid month. I'm proud of my effort and feeling more and more confident about running my first 5k. I'm glad it's the Color Run because it's more of a "fun run" and not a serious race.


When I run the Turkey Trot, Jessica and I will be wearing "Where's Waldo" outfits. I'm excited. :-)

New Personal Best!

Last night we met at Ocee Park at 8pm to run again. We didn't run on Wednesday, so we had to run last night.

When we got to Ocee Park, the lights that are usually on (they're on the baseball diamonds) were not on. Only the back two diamonds were lit, and the front two were not (which made it quite dark). I'm not sure what will happen when we get into winter and there aren't outdoor sports on a nightly basis.

It was cooling off when we arrived at 8 and there was a nice breeze. It actually felt good and I'm glad I've discovered running at night.

It was just me, Lesley, and Jo last night and I was on W4D2 of C25K, while Lesley was on W3D3. We all started the five minute warm-up walk together and then after the five minutes were up, we started our run. I ran for three minutes while Lesley and Jo ran for 1.5. It was after 1.5 minutes of running together that we split.

As I was running last night, I could tell that I was doing better than before. I had more energy and I felt more determined. I did feel sick as I was running (felt like I could throw up), but I kept it together. I also needed to use the bathroom, but kept it together as well.

I figured out that one lap around the fields is 1/2 a mile. 

As I was running, my legs did feel like cement and I felt really tired, but I focused on my breathing and I made an effort to push myself to run faster. I think it paid off.

When I finished, I saw that I had set a new personal best. Here's my progress so far:

 

Do you see that? I actually ran for 1.03 miles yesterday! With week four, I am now running more than I'm walking!! YAY ME!!

I am very proud of myself and while my run wasn't the greatest, I feel really good about it. I am not as sore this morning as I was on Tuesday, and I don't know if it's because my body is adjusting or if it's because I had an extra day off. Either way, I'm happy. I feel good. I am proud of myself.

I think I've got a solution to my problem of not being able to run next week. Lesley and I are going to run on Sunday (instead of Monday) and then we'll run on Thursday. Then I'll treat next Saturday like another training day when I run the 5k with Steve's work. I should be able to get back on track the following week with running MWF and then the week after is when Steve's gone again. But I think he's home Monday (the 14th), so I can run Monday night and then my dad will be here, so maybe I can go run one night while he's here. Then I wouldn't need to run again because Saturday is my first real 5k.

The more I think about running my first real 5k on the 19th of October, the more emotional I get. It's probably stupid, but I'll probably cry when I finish my race. Being able to actually run a 5k is something that I have wanted to do, but just didn't think I'd be able to do it. To have my dad, my husband, and my children there to watch me cross the finish line is just amazing. I'm teary-eyed just thinking about it.

So I think I can do W5D1 (5 minute warm-up, jog for 5, walk for 3, jog for 5, walk for 3, jog for 5, cool down), but not W5D2 (5 minute warm-up, jog for 8, walk for 5, job for 8, 5 minute cool-down), or W5D3 (5 minute warm-up, run for 20, 5 minute cool-down). 

It seems so extreme to me. I mean, run for 20 after just running for 8? It seems like it should be gradual, and lead to run for 10 then maybe run for 12 and then run for 15 and then maybe run for 18. But to just go from running for 8 to running for 20? Craziness.

Weird to think that they want me to run for 20 straight minutes on week 5. I don't think that's going to happen. We'll see. I may be repeating week 4 again.

A Colorful Run

My first 5k is on October 5th. I'll be running and walking with Steve and the boys in memory of a co-worker of Steve's that passed away from brain cancer. She was in her 20s and it was diagnosed only three months before she passed. To say it was unexpected would be an understatement. When we do this first 5k, I'll be treating it like a training day. It's next Saturday (not this coming Saturday, but a week from this Saturday).

My first "REAL" 5k will be on October 19th. It's a local Color Run (not THE Color Run, but close). I'll be running it with Lesley, Leigh Anne, Jo, Stacey, Jackie, and Heather (I think). We are all running at different levels (I am the slowest) but it should be a fun run to do together. You don't really do this one in any serious way because they throw stuff at you while you run.

I think it'll be fun, but I'm not sure how it'll go. This is not the official Color Run, so I don't know if it'll be as good, or not. Either way, I'm sure we'll have a good time running together.

We get a t-shirt and a pair of sunglasses to wear while we run. 

We've been preparing for this first 5k and each time I run I'm questioning if I'll be ready for it or not. I pray that by October 19th, I'm ready and that three miles doesn't seem like an eternity to complete. 

Steve will be traveling starting next week (during my birthday) and will be gone next week and then the week before my Color Run. I had asked my dad if he wanted to come down for my birthday, so I wouldn't have to spend it alone, but he can't. He said he was planning on coming down to be here for my race!

He'll be here for my first 5k.

To cheer me on and watch me finish.

It seriously brought me to tears when he said he wanted to come down to be here to support me. I've been preparing myself for this first 5k and it just means a lot to know that he wants to be here to see me accomplish something that I've been training for and working really hard to do.

I can't run tonight because Steve will be at a dinner thing tonight and won't get home until later. I've asked if anyone wants to run tomorrow, and Lesley said tomorrow works better for her anyway because it's supposed to rain all day and all night tonight.

Tomorrow we'll be running and then I'm hoping to run on Saturday. Steve is gone next Monday and won't get home until late Wednesday, so the earliest that I can run next week is on Thursday. I might try Monday morning with Hugh... but I don't know-- I hate my single jogger and I need to get the tires inflated. Oy.

The good news is that I'm not sore anymore from Monday's exhausting run. I feel decent today and hopefully having the extra day off will make the run tomorrow even better.

 

I Did It!

Today was a turning point. The C25K training went from warming up to starting to get serious.

I did not want to run tonight. I told Steve at 5:45 that I was going to let Stacey know that I wasn't going to run. He totally stopped me and told me that it wasn't an option. "I don't care if you walk tonight, but you're not staying home." His exact words.

So I went. However, I took two Aleve before leaving because I've got cramps and I'm not feeling great. My knee hurts, my lower back is throbbing, and I have a slight headache. So getting out of running was so appealing, but I went.

Tonight it was just me and Lesley and Stacey. I was slated to start Week 4, which includes running for FIVE straight minutes. I wasn't sure what to do... but Stacey said if I tried and couldn't do it, I could just walk what I needed. as she said last week, "You never know if you don't try." She's so wise.

So we started off together with the five minute warm-up walk. W4D1 was: five minute warm up, run for 3 minutes, walk for 1.5, run for 5 minutes, walk for 2.5, run for 3 minutes, walk for 1.5 and run for 5 with a five minute cool down. Total time: 31 minutes.

Just typing it I'm thinking, "Holy cow!" I walked a total of 0.84 miles at 18:49 and then ran 0.96 miles at 16:38. It's the longest I've run so far. My total distance tonight was 1.80 miles bringing my total miles since starting four weeks ago to 16.1 miles!

I was dying at the 1/2 way point. My legs felt like cement and it was really hard to keep going. My calves hurt, but I didn't feel like I was cramping there-- only I felt like I had cramped up on my right hip. I wasn't as out of breath as I thought I'd be, but I was physically tired. 

Running for five straight minutes is no joke. It was a lot to do and the last two minutes were hard, but I did it. Thankfully, Lesley and Stacey were there with me giving me support as I finished my last five minute run.

So it's been four weeks of running. Four weeks of going three days a week without exception. Do I notice anything different yet? No. Do I feel different? Not really. I won't give up, but I am disappointed that I haven't noticed any big changes yet.

I will say one great thing is that my average heart rate was 128 and I was in the zone for 31 minutes and 26 seconds. My maximum heart rate was 168 which isn't too high... considering that I was running for five straight minutes and felt like someone had lit me on fire. So maybe there are changes happening that I'm just taking for granted.

I'm going to shower and to bed. I'm hoping that I'm not super sore tomorrow.

I'll close by saying that it wasn't a horrible run. It wasn't a great run either. It was difficult and challenging, but it wasn't as terrible as I had expected it to be. I'll take that as a win.
 

Can It Get Worse?

For real.

So, today is Friday and I wasn't sure when I'd get a chance to run. Hugh had his 9 month appointment this morning, and then I had to be home at 11 for Gus to get off the bus. I wanted to go as soon as he got home, but Monika came over with my money (for my photo shoot that I did on Sunday) and she stayed until after 12.

I decided at 12:45 that I'd just go and get it over with so I could relax for the rest of the day.

I don't know what the heck I was thinking. It was a bad idea and as soon as I pulled into the park, a fear crept over me... "Please God, don't let today be as bad as the Friday two weeks ago."

I got the boys out and loaded into the double jogger.

It was 1pm and HOT. What was I thinking?!?! Hugh started crying the minute I started and he didn't stop. Do you know how hard it is to focus on running while you're nine month old is screaming like someone is torturing him?

It was horrible. Simply horrible. 

I couldn't focus, I was exhausted before I even started. I kept trying to calm him down and he wouldn't stop crying. He was hot, I was hot. He was in desperate need of  a nap and I thought he'd nap in the stroller, but he was too hot with the hot sun beating down on him.

I ended up going so slowly. I went 1.28 miles and walker 0.80 at 23.25 min and ran 0.48 at 18:50. It was not good.

So I came home very tired, sweaty, and just overwhelmed. I'm glad I went, but I hate running with the boys. I just can't focus and I end up pushing 80 pounds... it's too much.
 

As soon as we got home, Hugh crashed. He had a flu shot and hemoglobin check today, so that could be part of his overall unhappiness. 

I will be repeating week three next week because I am not ready to run five minutes straight. I can't even run three minutes straight, so I know five isn't possible yet.

Honestly, I don't know what I'm doing. I feel like it's a ridiculous notion to think that I'll be able to run a 5k next month. I pray that a good run comes my way soon, because I don't know if mentally I can handle feeling like crap after I run each time. I just get so disappointed and feel like I suck.

 This image is the one that scares the crap out of me. Oy.

And last but not least...