175 Days Left

I swear that running makes me stupid....and forgetful.  The plan for today was to go to a water aerobics class with my mom in the morning and then she would come watch the monkeys while I went for a run this afternoon. Of course, nothing in my life seems to go according to plans these days.  I got into a phone call 20 minutes before the water aerobics class was supposed to start.  Nobody was dressed and I didn't have anything put together to take the boys to the pool afterwards.  It quickly became obvious that there would be no water aerobics on the schedule today.  So, I decided to get everyone in the car and just do an inside run today.  It check the run box and still put us in the position to get to the pool.

I got everything ready - pool stuff, after pool clothes, and run stuff - and put it on my kitchen counter so I could stuff the pool bag.  I got everyone into the car and off we went.  We got to the gym and I realized that I didn't have any socks.  I had left them on the counter.  I searched through my mom's pool bag and couldn't find her pair of socks.  (They were in a side pocket...I didn't look there.)

A lesser woman would have thrown in the towel.  Me, I put my feet into my shoes and decided to give it a go.  Because of the sock situation, I only ran 2 miles.  (There's that word again....ONLY).  It wasn't bad on my feet, but I wouldn't have wanted to go much farther.

I had forgotten about the treadmill.  That is one unforgiving piece of equipment.  I must run pretty slow out on the street.  Back in my younger days (like 2 years ago), I ran on the treadmill every.single.day.  I would walk at 4mph and run between 5 and 5.5mph.  I couldn't keep those paces today.  I ran at 5.0 for half of the running intervals, but I couldn't recover during the minute walking interval, so I slowed it down to about 4.8.  I prefer running outside.  I will be glad when my husband gets home and I don't have to rely on my parents or the gym babysitting to get my runs in.  I miss the early morning quiet.

Today's stats:
2 miles in 27.03 (13.5 minute mile)
...and that's better than nothing.

177 Days Until the Disney Princess Half Marathon

Holy summer, Batman!  Today, I was THAT runner.  You know, the runner that is out when it is eight bazillion degrees.  The one that you are looking at saying, she's either serious or just plain crazy.  Since I am actually training for a big race, I guess I am serious.  Since said race is a half marathon, I am only half crazy.  

My mom came to watch the circus for me while I went for my run.  She really wanted me to wait until after dinner to go.  She said that it would cool off.  At 4:45pm when I went out, it was 88 degrees with 70%  relative humidity.  For those of us who need those numbers brought into perspective...it was freaking hot.  It was the kind of hot where you start sweating as soon as you step out of the door.  It was the kind of hot where you are really, really thankful for your air conditioning.  (Now, I promised myself that I would not complain about being hot after wearing a coat well into June in Rhode Island, but I made that promise before I had to run in a Virginia summer.  It was hot.)   And, my mom was right.  It did cool down a little after dinner.  It's only 79 degrees now.  But there is a monster thunderstorm rumbling out there and I am neither serious enough nor crazy enough to run in a thunderstorm unless I am running to cover because thunder and lightning scare me.  

Even though it was surface of the sun hot, I felt good.  My walking intervals were only extended twice - once when cars were whizzing by me and I didn't hear my watch beep and once when I had to stop and wait for the light at the main road to change so I could safely cross the street.  As it was rush hour and near the end of my run, I walked across the street as not so scare the poor, unsuspecting commuters just trying to get home.  My mom made me take may water bottle, so I used some of the water to splash on my face a few times.  It helped.  I got honked at once by a car I didn't recognize and I saw my friend's mom drive past.  I don't think she recognized me....most people aren't used to seeing me out running.

Today's stats:

2.82 miles in 37.32 (13.2 minute mile)

This is a little faster!!  

179 Days Left

  

It was a day of running fails.  

RUNNING FAIL 1: I got lost.  Well, I guess I didn't get lost exactly because I knew where I was.  The problem was that I wasn't where I was supposed to be and I wasn't where I thought I was going.  I mapped my run last night and then, this morning, when the (shoe) rubber met the road, I didn't make a turn like I was supposed to.  Because I didn't make that turn, I didn't get into the neighborhood that I was expecting to be in.  So, I had to adjust.  I ended up on the OTHER side of the neighborhood.  I had to run up the MAIN ROAD....you know, the road where there are a bazillion cars driving at a million miles an hour.  The icing on the cake - there are no sidewalks on the MAIN ROAD.  I took my life into my own hands to get home.  Luckily, I didn't get hit by a car.  

RUNNING FAIL 2:  I came home to map the run I did instead of the run I planned.  It was a quarter mile short.  My 4 mile run was 3.76 miles. 

RUNNING FAIL 3:  I extended my walking interval twice today.  So, when I should have only walked for one minute, I walked for 4 minutes and 15 seconds.   And I did this twice.  (I was hot and I was "lost" and I was over it.)

RUNNING FAIL 4:  I didn't push myself through the suck today.  I gave in to it.  I extended the walking interval (see Fail 3). I probably walked slower than I normally do.  I know that I ran slower.  I let the sweat and the heavy legs and the missed turn get to me.  When I heard the running beep, I waited a bit before I started to run.  I didn't run when I got back to my neighborhood.  I walked home.  

But, there were some running wins too.

RUNNING WIN 1:  I had feeling in my toes for 3.76 miles.  My toes didn't fall asleep!  Maybe my new shoes and I are starting to get intimate.

RUNNING WIN 2:  I got back home.  I kept going (albeit at a more of a walk than a run) when I realized that I wasn't in the right spot.  I made the adjustment and finished.

RUNNING WIN 3:    The knees seem to be holding up.

Today's Stats:

3.76 miles in 51.38 (13.6 minute mile)

...and one day I am going to be super fast.  You just wait and see.  

181 Days Left

So, I'm getting slower.  I am supposed to be getting faster.  It's making me cranky.  It's making me want to stay in bed when the alarm goes off.  I don't know why I am getting slower.  Maybe it's the new shoes.  I read that new shoes can be like running in sand for a little while.  They can slow you down until they become one with your foot.  Maybe it's the fact that it was so humid that I couldn't even sweat. You know how I feel about running in the humidity.   Maybe it's the fact that I got home late last night and didn't really sleep well.    It was Book Club night and I slept in the house all alone.  Maybe I am just slow.  All I know is that I'm getting frustrated about it.

Naturally, when something is frustrating, it should go on Facebook.  So, I posted my times for the other princesses and I whined about  mentioned my slower times.  My princess friend (and just all around friend), Jen, reminded me that I still got out there.  I did my run.  She reminded me that it was still 2.58 miles.   That helped......a little.

Today's Stats:
2.58 miles (in 1000% humidity) in 34.50  (13.3 minute mile)

This weekend I am going to have to find a new place to run.  I have been going around (and around and around) my neighborhood, which is an awful lot like running on a track.....just longer.  I'll play around with maps and see what I can find.

 

183 Days Left

So, today was a pretty bad day.  I didn't run because it wasn't a running day.  I went to court instead.  We lost our case.  It was a bad day.  I've been looking forward to bedtime since lunchtime.  Anyway, I am having a glass of wine tonight.  Maybe two.  I'll run it off tomorrow.

  

In other news, my knee is aching again.  I am going to ice it while I drink my glass (or two) of wine.  Since my husband isn't home to share the wine or the bad day, I thought that Ryan could stand in for him.  

184 Days Left

<----  See those babies.  Those are my new running shoes.  (Yes, I know that they are not yellow....more on that in a minute.)  Funny thing about these new shoes.  They are pretty much the same shoes that I had, only purple.  Seems as though my old shoes may have just died of old age.  It happens.  Now I have the new and improved model.  They are a size bigger than my old shoes.  Apparently three children have made my big feet even bigger. (Thanks guys!)  I took them out for a test drive this afternoon.  They felt good on my feet - like I was landing on a cloud.  That is, until my toes started to fall asleep about 1 1/2 miles in.  The running store lady said that I should put 300-500 miles on these shoes before I buy new ones.  She also suggested some new shoes just before the race.  Guess I'm going to have to see how long it takes to break this pair in so I know how far in advance I need to buy the new ones.

So, you may have noticed that these shoes are not the butter yellow shoes of my Belle dreams.  They are more Tangled purple.  I am not sure what to do about this situation.  I will now have to consider a new costume.  I'll get back to you on that.

Anyway, back to the shoes.  I felt fast while I was running.  I upped my running interval to 2 minutes 15 seconds.  It felt good.  I got back and looked at my time and realized that my shoes lied.  I was slow.  I'm a little disappointed in that because the run felt so good.  But, it's done and I will do it again on Thursday.

Today's Stats:
2 minute 15 seconds running intervals, 1 minute walking interval
2.58 miles in 32.33 minutes (12.5 minute mile)

186 Days Until the Disney Princess Half Marathon

My post is a day late.  I did my run yesterday.  It was 4 miles.  I have NEVER in my life run more than 3-ish miles.EVER.  I was terrified of yesterday's run.  4 miles seemed so far.  I did my run at the beach.  (I'm glad that I didn't wait.  We ended up leaving the beach a day early so we could get some of our boxes unpacked before my husband had to go back to Rhode Island for a couple of weeks to finish his classes.)  I went two miles north on the beach road and then turned around and ran back to the cottage.  I ran past two restaurants that we always go to.  I ran past the place that we were going to drive back to for breakfast.  I ran to the mini golf course that we always play.  Getting there was easy.  Then I had to turn around.  I had to get myself back home.  Amazingly, the two miles home weren't terrible.  (They weren't easy, but they weren't terrible.)  My legs got tired around 3 1/2 miles.  There was a little, tiny incline - like a driveway, not a hill - and I cursed it.  I wondered how I am going to get up an overpass or 3) at mile 11 of the half marathon when I could barely get up a driveway at mile 3 1/2.  But, I kept going.  I finished.  I gave myself a pat on the back.  Then I got my last shower underneath the cottage and packed up to go home.  A 4 mile run was a great way to end vacation.

Today's stats:

4 miles in 48.56 (12.14 minute mile)

I got home to unpack boxes only to have my knee swell up and start to hurt again.  It hurt to bend and it hurt to go up and down the stairs.  I iced it for a bit after I got my kitchen put together.  When I woke up this morning, the swelling was gone and the pain was gone.  After another day of boxes, it started to ache a little, but nothing like yesterday.  As soon as things calm down, I am going to the running store to get new shoes.

189 Days Until the Disney Princess Half Marathon

Borrowed the picture from my friend Jen.  Check out her blog:
http://luebbertcircusrunning.blogspot.com

Runners are crazy.  It's 75 degrees with 90% humidity at 6:00 in the morning.  The sun is just coming up.  There is a gorgeous sunrise just over the dune. The ocean is crashing onto the sand just a football field away.  I lace up my running shoes, walk down our little street to the big street and it's like a super highway of runners, walkers, bikers, and people walking their dogs.  What makes it crazy is that all of these people are on vacation.    Instead of drinking a cup of coffee on the deck and enjoying the view or sleeping in, these fools are out running.  I just wanted to look at them and say, "Dude, you are on vacation." 

This year, I was one of the crazy ones.  I got up early during vacation and went running.  It wasn't a terribly long run...that's for Saturday, but it was a run.

Today's stats:
2.1 miles in 26.25 minutes (12.5 minute miles)
*There was a headwind for the second mile.  It slowed me down a little, but I was grateful for the breeze.

191 Days Left

Today was an easy 2 mile run.  You probably can't believe that you just read that.  An EASY TWO MILES.  I found myself thinking about just two miles in a couple of ways this morning.  When I first got up, I was excited that I had only 2 miles to do today.  When I was out and about, a group of runners ran past me going the other direction.  When I turned around and passed them again, one of the ladies told me that she was glad to see my yellow shirt.  I thought to myself, I don't know how much farther you have, I only did 2 miles. It's funny how that little word only can have such different meanings. 

Today's Stats:
2.1 miles in 25.15 (11.9 minute mile)
Considering how roasty toasty it was this morning, I am pretty pleased with this morning's run. 

193 Days Left

Today is Sunday.  Today was supposed to be a running day.  My alarm went off at 5:30am.  I turned that thing right off and went back to bed.  As I may have mentioned last time, it's still dark at 5:30am in Virginia.  I may have also mentioned that we just moved.  I may not have mentioned that I have spent the last 2 days cleaning my dirty house.....I even scrubbed all of my tile floors Cinderella-style.  (I got practice being a princess - my friend Allison called it cross-training in preparation for the race.)  Today, when my alarm went off at running time, I was tired and sore and I didn't want to go, so I didn't.  I felt bad about it once I woke up again.

BUT!  The guilt was short lived because today is the first day of vacation!!  Our family repacked some of the stuff into the car and headed an hour south to the Outer Banks of North Carolina for our annual beach week.  Once we unpacked, played on the beach, went out to dinner, and went to play putt-putt, I remembered that fellow princess, Elizabeth, stuck with her training during her vacation to St. Something.  (St. John, but I kept saying she was in St. Thomas.  She was nice enough not to point out my constant mistake.)   If she could do it in paradise, I could do it at my beach, so I put my kids into bed, threw on my running clothes, laced up my shoes, rolled on the Body Glide, and headed out the door.

The wonderful thing about the Outer Banks is that every half mile is marked along the way.  Our cottage is at mile post (MP) 17.5.  I needed to do a 3 mile long run today, so I walked up the street, turned left at the end and ran a mile and a half to MP 19 and then turned around and came back.  The first mile was pretty easy.  I felt good.  When I got to a mile and a half and turned around, my knee started to ache a little during the running intervals.  I was also a little concerned about my dinner (which was sitting in my stomach) making a reappearance.  But I kept going.  My Prince Charming met me at the end of the run so we could walk the dog for my cool down walk.

It wasn't easy today.  I tried to talk myself out of it, promising that would get up and go tomorrow.  I could think of a million reasons to just put it off until another day or just skipping it all together and picking back up on Tuesday.  But, at the end of the day, I found the will to do it.  There are probably going to be lots of days when it's cold or rainy or I'm tired or sick or I just don't want to.  Those are the days when I'm going to have to put on the big girl running shoes and just do it.

Today's stats:
3.1 miles in 39.45 (12.7 minute mile)

195 Days Left

Well, we got to Virginia.  As promised (to myself), Friday was going to be a running day.  So, at 5:30 am....in the morning, I woke up.  It was dark.  Not, oh, there is the sun coming over the horizon, but it's still the middle of the night dark.  Seems that Rhode Island is a little further east than Virginia, so it gets light earlier there.  I wanted to stay in bed...who runs in the dark?  But, I got up and got going.   I decided that it stays dark in Virgina to allow runners to get through their runs before the sun comes up to melt your face off.  It was 74 degrees with 93% this morning.  It was sticky.  It's supposed to be 93 degrees with a real feel temperature of 99 today.  Glad I got up early.
 
It was my first run in my new old neighborhood.   Why new old?  We've lived here before.  I've run here before.  But, we are back so it's new.  I'm a "serious" runner now, so that's new too.  I'm training for something.  That's REALLY new.  Hence new old. 

Some things about my new old route:
1.  It's a big loop.  From the end of my driveway (or my parents' driveway since that is where we are staying until our stuff comes to our house at the other end of the loop), it's 0.86 miles around and right back to the driveway.
2.  It's flat.
3.  I know every single person in every single house.  I've known them since I was 5 years old.  I will always see someone that I know while I am out running.  Today was no exception. 
4.  It did not make me any faster.  I thought I would be able to blame my slowness on the hills in Rhode Island.  Now I don't have an excuse.  I'm just slow.  It's okay.  Forward is a pace.
5.  I am going to have to find a place to do long runs.  3 times around the neighborhood was enough. 

Today's stats:
2.58 miles in 33.27 minutes  (12.8 minute mile)

198 Days Until the Disney Princess Half Marathon



Today was my last run in Rhode Island. It was a great day. I wasn't lightning fast, but I wasn't super slow either. Really, I just enjoyed it. I enjoyed the hill. I enjoyed the DOWNhill. I enjoyed the view. I enjoyed the weather. I enjoyed the run.

My knee held up.  That made me happy.  I felt a little twinge at the top of the hill, but there was no pain after that or after the run. 



Today's Stats:

2.2 miles in 29.10 (13.2 minute mile)

200 Days Until the Disney Princess Half Marathon

So yesterday I got hurt.  I don't know when or how I did it.  My legs were tired, but not sore after the Royal Run.  We had breakfast and then I came home to get ready for the packers.  I put my knee up on my bed to crawl across it and realized that something was wrong.  (Side note - I do not usually crawl across my bed for fun in the middle of the day.  My master bedroom is SO small, that there was a box in the floor and the only way that I could get to the other side was to move the box or crawl over the bed.  Crawling across the bed was supposed to be the easier option.)  When I put my knee down, it hurt....kind of a lot.  I pulled up the leg of my hanging out at my house capris to find a swollen knee.  Let's be honest, it looked like an elephant knee.  It was tender on the sides of the knee caps and on the back.  It didn't hurt (too much) to walk, but going up and down the stairs was a little tender.  I took some Motrin and threw a bag of frozen peas on it.  (Hey, we are cleaning out the freezer....the peas were headed to the trash.  I just recycled them for a good use.)  I iced it again after I walked down the hill from driveway cocktails at Princess Natalie's.  It was a little tender to put pressure on it but I hoped that sleep would make it go away.

My running fairy godmother granted my wish!!  I woke up this morning to a normal sized knee and only a little tenderness.  Walking was fine but the I could feel it on the stairs.  I am taking today off from running.  (Which is fine.  It is a rest day anyway AND the packers come tomorrow.)

Here's a toast to my first athletic injury!  And, since pain is weakness leaving the body, I am a little stronger today than I was yesterday!

201 Days Left

The Newport Princesses all met at a track on the Naval Station for a group run/walk/crawl/however you can get around the track.  I got up (before the alarm!), picked up two other princesses and off we went.  We met the other two members of our royal court at the track.  I promised myself that I wouldn't do a whole bunch of complaining about the weather, but I will say that it was a another sticky day in Newport.  It was hard to run. I am going to need to get over this.  One week from today, I will be running in Virginia.  In August.  The heat and humidity in Newport can't hold a candle to Virginia in August.  The humidity is going to become my friend.  All of that moisture in the air has to do something to keep me hydrated, right!?!?!!?
Anyway,  My friend Jen stuck with me for the whole three miles.  She slowed down with me when I couldn't keep up the pace we had set.  I will say that we had a pretty good first mile - 12.08.  It went downhill from there.  She had to do 5 miles today, so I kept walking.  I got in another mile to her 2.  All in all, I did 4 miles in 60 minutes.  That's 15 minutes per mile.....one minute BELOW the required pace for the Princess Half Marathon!  At that pace, I will avoid the slow bus and I will be able to finish the race!

I did notice a few things this morning:
1.  I need to work on the post-race hair situation.  I looked in the mirror when I got home for my shower and I was a fright.  My new plan is to experiment with hair products (mostly hairspray) so that my hair is ready for the finish line photo.  (Hey, if you can't run fast, you might as well look great!)

2.  Running on a track is an experiment in torture.  At least when I am out on the road, I can run out and then I know that I have to get myself back.  There is a little motivation.  On the track, it's just circles.  I lost count of my laps.  The scenery never changed.  The NAPS kids kept staring at me.  I'm thinking that track runs will not become an integral part of my training at this point.

3.  Everything is more fun when there are people out there doing it with you.  The promise of breakfast with these wonderful people is even better!!

4.  I am going to have to start adding some distance in the next few weeks and the thought of that scares me to death.  I have never run more than 3.2 miles in my life.  Ever.  In two weeks, I am going to have to run 4 miles for my long run. 

5.  It's almost time to start making dinner reservations at Disney!  That means this race is real and it's closer than I think!

6.  Running makes me stupid.  I took the water bottle out again today.  (See how proactive I am!!)  I put my keys in the front pouch.  At the end of my run, I was noticing that the bottle was still heavy.  It was even sloshing a little bit.  But no water was coming out.  I figured something was wrong with the bottle.  So, during a walk, I popped open the top.  The water was gone.  I had forgotten about the keys.  They added the weight and they were moving around making the sound.  Way to go genius!

Today's Stats:
3 miles in 42.50 (14.2 minute miles)  Have to figure out a way to get faster. I need time to stop for pictures along the race course!

202 Days Left

**WARNING - WHINE AHEAD**

Wow!  It is HUMID in Rhode Island today.  It didn't cool down much over night and I woke up to condensation on the windows.  That is NEVER a good sign.  I walked outside and really wanted to go right back in.  It's the kind of humid where you can't catch your breath on the walking intervals.  It's the kind of humid where the sweat and subsequently, your clothes, just stick to you.  It's the kind of humid where you just can't cool down. 

It was not a good running day.  I was slow.  My legs were fighting me at the end of the run.  My lungs were screaming for the entire time.  But, it's done. 


**Now back to our regularly scheduled programming.....**

My neighborhood is one big hill.  I live at the bottom of it.  No matter which way I turn when I leave my house, I have to go up a hill.  I have figured out the perfect path to minimize the UP and maximize the DOWN. (Today, I switched things up.   I did the end of my run at the beginning and then finished the run in the "right" order.  It's a little trick that I play with myself.  If I do the inner loop before I do the outer loop, then I can just run home when I can see my house.  Pretty slick, if I do say so myself.  However, this genius tactic has me running uphill instead of just finishing up my warm up walk.)  No matter where I start, I have to get up there somehow.  So, at the tip top of the hill, where there is nowhere else to go but down, I do an internal happy dance.  I tell myself (sometimes out loud....don't judge) that I did it!  I made it to the top.  It's all downhill from here.  I'm sort of going to miss that hill.  Our new neighborhood in Virginia is pretty flat.  I'm going to have to find something new to get excited about.

Today's stats:

2.2 miles in 30.34  (13.8 minute mile)

At this rate, it's going to take me 3 days to finish a half marathon.

Looking forward to going to run with the other Princesses tomorrow morning.  It will be our last time together before I run off into the sunset. 

204 Days Left

This race is stressing me out......get out of bed 5 times during the night after thinking about it all day stressing me out.  I have read just about every blog ever written about this race.  I have been watching videos on YouTube of people running the race.  I have read 3 books about running and training and I have poured over the training plan.  I even went as far as to make a calendar and plug the runs in so I can print it out and put it on my fridge.....in the new house.

Did I mention that we are moving?  Next week?  That could be causing some stress too, but the anxiety is manifesting itself in the race.  Running is supposed to be a source of stress relief, but right not, running is just another thing to the list of things that I have to worry about.

So, this morning, I did what anyone else would do.  I got up and ran.  My eyeballs opened at 5:25am.  I was up and out before my husband's alarm even went off.  (Good thing because he forgot to set it.)  I went outside to find that the humidity was back.  Not super thick, can't breathe humidity.  Just sticky gross humidity.  I went anyway.   There wasn't a lot of whining on the inside today.  I just went.  I was slower than last time.  I could tell from the beginning.  The running intervals were slower and the walking intervals were slower.  I kept going.  I didn't curse at the watch to beep so I could walk.  I kept going.  When I got back home, I was glad to be done, but I felt like I could have kept going.  (Why didn't I, you ask?  Because my husband has to go to work.  If I want a shower in relative peace, I have to stop when I get home....or I have to get up earlier.  I stopped today.) 

Running is still hard.  The Jeff Galloway method says that you shouldn't be huffing and puffing at any point during the run.  That is a funny joke.  If I am running, I am huffing and puffing.  It's getting better, but there is no way that I could carry on any sort of conversation during my runs.  I'm okay with that.  I guess I will get there.  I'm just not there yet.  But, in the 30 minutes or so that I am running, nobody is crying or whining.  Nobody needs anything.  There is nothing that needs to get  organized for the packers.  There are no phone calls to make.  No plans to check or double check.  I don't love it....far from it.  Thinking about running will consume my thoughts during the day and keep me restless at night.  But during those 30 minutes, it's just me and my music.  It's peaceful.  It's the only time of my day that is peaceful.  I need that time, no matter how slow I go.

Today's stats:
2.2 miles in 29.19 minutes (13.3 minute mile)