Weekly Workout Summary 8/23/15

Monday: I had the day off to recover from my road trip and to try to get my life in order. I woke up cranky and not excited to run. So I immediately got dressed and set out for a run. I walked into a garage and was slapped with crushing humidity. Ok... I can't run in that. So I hit the treadmill. My god I hate the treadmill. I need to distract myself because staring at the display is just hell for motivation but I suffered though and got my 3 miles in. I need to figure out how to make friends with my treadmill.

Tuesday: 5 miles on the treadmill which was just awful. I covered the display and had cartoons playing on my ipad to distract me but I just feel like I am SO SLOW on the treadmill and it drives me crazy. If I try to bump it up to what my pace is outside I feel like I'm draining myself instantly. I guess I just need more practice.

Wednesday: 45 minute tempo run on the treadmill. I welcomed the torture this time because it came right after something that happened that I needed to sort out in my head. I probably didn't go as fast as I should have but I got it in and even managed to feel better after.

Thursday: 3 miles and I said to hell with it and went outside after work. The humidity was crushing but I didn't care. It had been a long and emotional week and I just needed to see some forward progress. It's so much easier to run when you can just focus on something in the distance and let it pull you forward. Mile one was a little rough but what else is new, I felt much better as the run went on and I wish I had been scheduled for more miles. My splits were encouraging though.

Friday: Rest day = working the deep fryer at a state fair all night does not feel like rest. I had a cute guy next to me working the grill though.

Saturday: Scheduled 60 minutes of light exercise, which I try to walk out. I didn't get in an official block but there was a party at my house and I feel like I walked a bunch just trying to get my socializing on.

Sunday: 6 miles scheduled, had to get up early to get this in before work and it was great. My final time was 27 seconds longer than my last 6 miles but I didn't need to stop for any walk breaks this time around and there were more hills along the route. Very happy with my performance especially considering the festivities the night before that lead to a severe lack of sleep. Looking forwarded to moving beyond this distance next week.

That's my holy crap I can probably do anything face. 

Weekly Workout Summary 8/16/15

Update is a little late, trying to get all of my ducks in a row this week!

Monday: Woke up at 4:30 am sore, blistered and chafed in several unpleasant places from my 6 miler the day before. Thought seriously about staying in bed and then remembered I was meeting someone for a run and I couldn't be a jerk like that so I got up. Really glad I did, I was only scheduled for 3 miles and I felt great during them, the soreness vanished quickly and I managed to settle into a nice comfortable pace as instructed. Final time: 31:13

Tuesday: I checked the weather the night before and they were calling for rain so I cancelled my running buddies and decided to do my 4.5 miles on the treadmill. When I woke up there was no way in hell I could do the treadmill. My mindset just would not allow it. So I peaked outside and noticed it wasn't raining yet, I checked the forecast and the percentage had been cut in half so I figured it would be worth a shot. The problem was that it was 5am and overcast so it was so dark outside. I need to be better prepared for this, also a half mile out it started raining. I had my little flashlight, my water bottle and I was fumbling with my headphones. I don't have enough hands for that. It worked out well though, eventually I found a groove even though it was creepy running in such darkness. I made the executive decision to change my route and ran to a local dentists office who has a pretty big well lit parking lot where I ran in circles for 3/4 of a mile until the sun came up enough where I felt more comfortable heading back into the woods. This was my second day in a row of negative splits so I was very pleased with that. Final Time: 47:39

Wednesday: Speed work. Run a quarter mile fast, jog back and then repeat for 8 more times. We attempted this later in the day, not properly fueled for it and started out way to fast. It turned into run run faster than comfortable and walk in between. We hung in there though and really amped up our pace, it took a few rounds but we are getting better. Mentally it's much easier than it used to be. Final Miles: 4.3

Thursday 4 miles scheduled, 4 miles run. Hit this one early in the morning and rocked it. Almost completely negative splits, missed it by 2 seconds on mile 2 but I blame the big hill for that. I've come so far over the last few weeks, I'm glad I've been keeping track of everything because it's great to look back and see how far I've come. I can't wait to see where I am another month from now.

Friday: 2 miles scheduled, 2 miles done. Got this in before I started my road trip, I was very glad it was only 2 miles because it was hot and I was exhausted and eager to get on the road.

Saturday: Rest and by rest I mean walk about 7 miles around Niagara falls.

Sunday: 5k scheduled, only got 3 miles and I am happy with that because it was after 5 hours in the car, it was hot and humid as all hell, I was dehydrated and I'm not sure I'd eaten anything all day. So basically it's a miracle I was able to run at all. Smarter choices lead to better results.




Total Weekly Miles: 19.8
Total Monthly Miles: 39.07

Running, again.

This is the place I return to whenever I'm running.

I don't know what it is about running that calls to me so deeply.

I've never been good at it, it always results in injuries and I certainly don't fit the physical appearance of a "runner". That doesn't matter to me though, I have always been deeply in love with and overly enthusiastic about running. To the point where I will sideline myself with injury over and over again because I cannot control my passion and do too much too soon.

This year I had a birthday, like I tend to do every year and it got me thinking that I needed to get smarter about fitness. I spent from November - April obsessively going to a spin studio until eventually I was taking 9 classes a week and surprise, surprise hurt myself.

I took it as a sign when I saw an advertisement on my facebook feed that a local running store was offering a once a week, early morning, back to running group that would go for 6 weeks and if you wanted you could sign up for a 5k at the end of it. So I signed up thinking that would be good for me.

It turns out that I was correct. The first meeting I ended up sprinting a bit too much and had some knee pain after. The trainers were great though. They quickly recognized my issues and started working with me on it. At some points someone would grab the back of my shirt and tell me to slow down and eventually it worked. I started to find my comfortable pace, something I wasn't sure I could ever do.

I completed the program and the following week was the 5k. Was it great? I can say now that it was but only because of how much I learned from it.

The mother's day race was the first one I'd ever done and I didn't consider that for real since I was working with mom the whole time.

So of course I started out WAY too fast, I was so nervous and excited and just trying to make it through the crowd. This also means that I started to burn out fast. On top of that I am a morning runner, not having taken into account that I was technically training for an evening race and therefore and did not have the energy stored for this especially since I was nervous all day. It was lucky for that that along my journey I picked up an absolute angel of a running buddy who was smart enough to start off the race not like a bat out of hell and caught up to me just as I was thinking I would lay down on the side of the road and cry for my failures.

I had wanted to run it in 28 but I was already there a bit before 3 miles according to the app screaming at me from my headphones, so I kicked it in high gear for the last bit because I come from a long line of stubborn German women and would not accept over 30 minutes for my finish time. I ended up with 29:39 and that was fine by me.

My runs since then have been much more successful with my new found knowledge and discipline so I'm implementing it in my training for my next race which will be a 10k in September. I have aspirations to run great distances and this time around I'm going to use my smarts to not let anything stop me.

So I'll be reporting back here because this running fool needs a place to talk about all things running without driving everyone in earshot raving mad.

Run Like A Mother

I started writing this entry in May and saved it until I could add pictures and then just never came back. Whoops. I'm back for sure now because I need a place for my thoughts. Promise.


Well hello there blog I suppose you think I forgot about you. I didn't, I just forgot how to write.

I'm actually pretty glad I forgot about this thing for a while because when I went to update my "About Me" section it was really cool to see all of the things that had changed in just one year.  I have much to update you on but today I have returned with one specific post in mind, we can get to all of that catch up stuff at a later time. 



I'm going to brag about my Mom for a minute.

We did our first 5k yesterday (May 10, 2015) and she had no confidence in her ability to finish. I told her I could do it in 30 minutes and asked if she thought an hour was a reasonable expectation. She wasn't sure she could manage even that.

We lucked out and the weather was absolutely perfect, there was a slight chill in the air when we arrived but you could tell by the humidity that the cloud cover would eventually burn up and we would be in for some heat. Thankfully that didn't happen until we were lounging on my deck at home.

We elected to start near the back of the pack unsure of what to expect from this crowd. When the horn sounded there wasn't much hustle which I think helped her anxiety. I suspect she was worried everyone would take off like a shot and leave her in the dust, she didn't take into account who was in the crowd, there was no way that was going to be the case. As a mother's day race there was quite the variety of participants so I knew there was nothing to be worried about.

As we finally got underway we fell into a nice rhythm, a  combo of jogging and walking. This worked well for the first mile which had more hills than Mom had been expecting. During mile 2 she hit a bit of a road block her lack of confidence started to over take her, a points I was literally holding her hand up some hills. I cheered her on the entire way and even jogged backwards to give her something to focus on.

Even when she looked exhausted and told me she was done I kept cheering her on and she didn't give up. We were able to finish under her goal of 1 hour and clocked in at just under 45 minutes.

I am so freaking proud of her. She spent the rest of the day floating on cloud nine and told everyone we came in contact with that she finished a race earlier in the day.

Best Mother's Day ever.

Wahpp!

On most days I consider myself a fairly intelligent person. Apparently this doesn't apply when I'm thinking about running. Whatever made me think taking a month off and that starting back up running longer and farther than I ever had before would be a good idea is beyond me. I know I was excited to not be in pain anymore but I'm not sure why I thought my behavior was sustainable. 

Sure enough it only took a week for something horrible to happen. My left Achilles tendon decided enough was enough and pulled me to an abrupt stop. After a few days of rest I was certain I'd done something completely awful to it and planned on making an appointment with my doctor. Then a saintly physical therapist I work with decided to tape me up and encouraged me to rest more. So I did just that and as it turns out my injury isn't as bad as I feared. 

Today I went out for the first time for a short run, just under 2 miles and my leg felt great the entire time and continues to feel great so it looks like I lucked out this time in that I didn't seriously injure myself and was able to return to running quickly. 

If there is one thing I know now it is that I need to come up with a plan if I'm going to continue running so here's what I'm thinking for right now to keep myself safe from injury: 

So I'm going back to where I stared in April with my C25K program because I really need to limit myself again and slowly work up to my time and distance because that really did work so well for me the first time around. I'm hoping I can stick with this and continue on injury free, I need to apply my smarts here if I'm going to keep myself in one piece.

Also,  I need to stop watching shows about girls who get abducted while out running before I go out for a run. I think most of my cardio comes from the panic I feel while imagining kidnappers around every corner. Or when a speeding car zooms by me around a corner with mere inches to spare.

Oh well, back to the safety of the trail next week and then just a few more weeks until my home route will be in a much less dangerous area. 

Well that's interesting

I firmly believe that dragging half dead butt out of bed this morning was only made possible because I was thinking about all the people yesterday who told me I inspired them. So, thank you citizens! 

The first part of today's run before work this morning was amazing, near perfect if I do say so myself. My rhythm was on point, my focus solid and my headspace clear. I could not have asked for a better run. The return trip wasn't so hot. The shooting pain in my butt came back and shot to my knee and then down the front to my shin. I could not run through it, it hobbled me. I stopped for a minute and tried some really strange stretches while praying no one would happen upon me. 

I started back at a very slow pace still in pain and feeling the energy just evaporate from my soul. I had a few good stretches where I picked up my pace and actually felt less pain that way but having lot momentum and heading up hill my energy level was shot. 

Eventually I made I back and when I checked my app I saw that despite my dismal finish I actually had my fastest pace of the week so there is that to focus on. 

My morning at the office was so busy I was completely chained to my desk and made it a point to evacuate the building for lunch and found a delightful spot to dine. 

When I was finished I decided to take advantage of the gorgeous weather and go for a little stroll. I made a big mistake though and opted to keep my flimsy flat shoes on. In just 20 minutes (which ended going up a really steep hill) I knew I was in trouble. Both of my feet had blisters on the bottoms and my left achellies tendon felt like it might blow out of my leg. 

Immediately I iced it and about an hour later it no longer hurt but felt creaky. I decided to put on my running shoes even though they looked completely ridiculous with my maxi dress and the difference was instantious. I just needed some support so on my way home I got some tape and after watching a few YouTube videos decided on a configuration that would offer support. 

I felt good as new and was perfectly fine during a post dinner 2 mile chat and stroll with my mother. 

I'm resting it right now and hoping for everything to be normal again in the morning. I suspect that my poor foot wear choice is mostly to blame because that same hill made my tendon ache in my old crappy sneakers in my lunch time walks during the winter, but I'm not discounting the fact that I may be running too much too fast. 

I think the trail might be a no go tomorrow but I have a few other options depending on how everything feels in the morning. The last thing I want is another injury sidelining me. 

I did it!

I am not a morning person but I find working out in the morning to be the best route for me because I am GREAT at coming up with excuses for not working out if I have all day to do so. 

I've gone running before work on the trail several times but only on the weekends. I have to be at my desk a full hour earlier during the week so instead of leaving at my normal time today I had to be up and out a full hour earlier. I'm not going to lie, that was not easy. I felt like I was still half asleep on the drive over. 

As I parked the car I got really excited though because there were a lot of people out and about running. 

I hit the trail and started running and it just was not going well, I felt really lazy today. I couldn't find a rhythm, my form was all off and I kept wondering how writes it would be to nap in the woods. 

I had to stop to re tie my shoes and then I  started getting fussy and actually thought about cutting it short. Thankfully  I thought about how much worse I would feel drowning in disappointment later so I kept going and even attempted to pick up some speed. My endurance just wasn't there though and at the halfway mark it felt like it would take me forever to get back. I also started to worry that I wouldn't get back to work with enough time to stretch and change. 

So I had a little pep talk with myself, there is obviously only one way to get back quicker, run you fool. 

So I started hauling ass which is a special kind of torture on the return trip because it's all up hill. Suddenly I noticed a couple up ahead of me in the distance just strolling along hand in hand. I focused on them and the ground I was gaining. I finally smiled for the first time since I ripped myself from my nice warm bed and that's when it happened 

Ok well I didn't get shot but it sure did feel like it and my right leg felt dead. A few minutes of stretching later and I was functional again but all hope of as strong finish was lost. 

I ended my run in a pretty dismal mood but it thankfully didn't take me long to realize a few very important things. 1) hey I got my ass out of bed and made it to the trail this morning  and 2) my duration and distance are already so much more than April and I've only been back at this for 4 days. 

I have all the reason in the world to smile about what I'm doing. I wore heels all day at work without leg pain and I'm actually typing this on my phone as I'm enjoying an evening stroll. So I'm stronger, I'm not injuring myself and everyday I'm laying the foundation for some amazing feats yet to come. 

Breath. Smile. Repeat. All is well. 

There's a glitch in the matrix

Finding motivation to run today was challenging. I had the day off from work and my legs were incredibly sore. I laid in bed stretching for a few extra minutes trying to find the proper motivation and I decided that I should go running because 

1) it really was nice outside
2) the beef worked an overnight so I had no one to cuddle with
3) sitting around wouldn't make my legs feel any better 

4) it would be hard to find the motivation to go out once the beef got home

So I decided that since it was early enough that traffic would be light and the view would be pleasant I would do a straight shot out and back from a road I live off of. The added bonus of this was that my shaky motivation wouldn't be a factor because no matter how far out I went I would still have to run back home. I am a genius.

4 miles of this view made it really easy to forget about how sore my legs were but on the flipside of that I kept zoning out and daydreaming about the lake so I was slowing down much more than I normally would. I also managed to some how pause my app halfway though the run and it took me about a mile and a half to realize it so while my distance was logged correctly the pace was all off I don't care too much though I'm just happy to be out there again. 

I did notice today that whenever I stopped my glasses would fog up instantly which is a great motivator to keep things moving. I've also been loading up on the sunscreen because as much and I love my super absorbent bondi band I do not want to deal with the tan line it would cause across my forehead. 

I had one weird moment on my run today on the way out I happened across a road kill squirrel and as expected happened upon it on my return trip. Clearly nothing out of the ordinary there until a few minutes later I ran across a second one that I did not notice the first time yet it looked exactly like the first one I saw and all I could think was that there was a glitch in the matrix.

I'm excited for tomorrows run I'm going to try something I've never done before, should be fun!

Well that's better

The one good thing I could say about yesterday's run was that aside from the general horribleness my form was still good. I knew that was absolutely true when I woke up this morning and my abs felt like if done a billion sit-ups.

It took some extra stretching but I got my butt out of bed and hit the road for another run. I gave myself a proper warm up today instead of frolicking towards the trail and suddenly I'd already gone a mile and I was feeling GREAT. 

At several points the trail I run on is intersected by a road. I had been under the impression that there were 3 sections. Today before it was time to turn around I discovered that there is a forth and was excited that there were still unexplored areas for me to look forward to. 

I even managed to let go of some of my go go go mentality and literally stop and smell the flowers. Cheerful daisies were in abundance today but of course when I wanted to document them I can only find one.

Aside from sucking wind during miles 3 and 4 everything else was physically awesome. Mentally though I had a hard time keeping focus but I know that had more to do with me thinking about work stuff. 

In order to keep myself motivated I made a deal with myself that if I could see my shadow I didn't have to push so hard because I would know of someone was sneaking up behind me, but if I was in the shade and couldn't see my shadow I needed to turn it up a notch just incase. Turns out most of the up hill stretches are in the shade, yikes! 

Don't get me wrong, I feel like I'm running in a very safe area and this little exercise in mind fuckery was inspired by the gentlemen who didn't hear me approaching from behind because of his ear buds and pretty much crapped himself as I passed. He looked less then pleased as I tripped over myself apologizing and I wondered if he was plotting my demise as he continued on with excrement in his shorts. 

Speaking of dung, as I was barreling down a hill blinded by the sun I noticed a steaming pile in my path at the last second and proceeded to launch myself over it in what might be the least graceful movement I have ever accomplished. Somehow I managed to stay relatively upright and not die  

Word to the wise: pick up after your dog and turn down your music, running shouldn't be so shitty. 

Ok, no more poop jokes. 

I see a lot of stretching in my future because I feel like I got hit by a bus but in the best way possible. I don't have any numbers yet but I'm hoping this is the start of a very lovely run streak. Tomorrow I won't be on the trail so it will be interesting to see how I do on pavement after such a long absence. 

Ta-Dah!

So as soon as I feel like a runner I find out that I'm not allowed to run. Maybe I jinxed myself but about a month ago my doctor banned me from running because of a disc injury in my back, no amount of temper tantrums or reasoning would change his mind. So I spent my time doing the stupidest thing possible, sitting around, pouting, indulging in bad habits  and telling my elliptical how stupid and boring it is.

However, this morning I greeted the dawn in all my neon glory and made my triumphant return to running. It was easily the worst experience of my entire life but somehow I survived and 4.31 miles later I'm here to tell you about it.

Summer is here which means the temperature is rising so I wanted a morning run, since I'm working this weekend I figured this would be a great opportunity to show up to work early and hit the trail. I forced myself to sleep early and woke up before my alarm this morning.

I was frantic with excitement and quickly gathered my things and headed out the door. In my haste I forgot to take my seasonal allergy medicine and decided that it would be a great idea to add an energy pack to my bottle of water. These were both poor choices.

I was anxious about how deconditioned I had become with all my sulking so I decided to not use the C25K app I had been working with and just turn up my music and go, setting an alarm on my phone for when I needed to turn around so I could get back to work on time without being propelled by fear. By the time I got to the trail I was feverish with excitement and energy packet and I was more frolicking than running at that point.

Everything started out great, the trail was felt like a tunnel at some points with all the the greenery that had bloomed since the last time I ran it was a really neat feeling to surrounded by all the green. Speaking of which did I mention I forgot my allergy medicine? My sinuses seemed to close almost instantly which makes breathing interesting but I can manage mouth breathing so it wasn't the end of the world.

Then the heart burn kicked in, I've been dealing with this at night for the past few days due to stress and poor dietary choices. I suspect the energy packet activated this and suddenly I was running in agony. This wasn't normal I had Mema's spaghetti sauce with dinner last night heartburn this was I made poor dietary choices all week and I may have given myself an ulcer due to this house buying process oh and also I did actually have Mema's spaghetti sauce with dinner last night heart burn which roughly feels like a gigantic hole is about to burn through your chest and it pulses and gets more severe with physical exertion or vomiting (both of which were happening in high quantities on the trail this morning).

I would have preferred to run with a dislocated shoulder to give you an idea of how I was feeling. I probably would have killed someone for a piece of sidewalk chalk to gnaw on. All though the pain I kept on, not because I'm stubborn and reckless but because I was 2 miles away from the office and had no choice. Eventually I found a great Sprint, Jog, Walk, Heave, Stumble, and Repeat pattern that served me well. At one point I was able to lose myself in the music instead of the fire in my chest and busted out with a pretty sick air guitar only to look up and find an oncoming running watching me and laughing. Whoops!

So embarrassment and complete physical agony aside I made it back and survived my return to running. No more spaghetti sauce for me and maybe I should meditate some of this stress away because I'm going back out there tomorrow today's nightmare not withstanding the trail is my happy place.

What did I just call myself?!

Today I actually felt a little bit like a runner. Now of course the minute I say that out loud I feel like a fraud but that seems to be pretty normal for most people when they start out so I'll just embrace it.

Today's run was a little bit different. It wasn't a new distance record that made me feel like a runner, I've run further before. It wasn't a new speed record that made me feel like a runner, I've run faster before. I felt like a runner today because I find got around some imaginary roadblock in my head and the amount of time I spent actually running increased.

Every week the app I'm using has me go up a level with more time spent running and less time walking. Today was the first day of level 5 and the app requires that I spend more time running than walking. It wasn't the first time the program asked me to do this but it was the first time I cooperated with the instructions. Typically towards the end of the running interval I can feel it coming and my brain just shuts down and I lose my momentum with about 30 seconds to go.

Today I discovered a way to mentally power through and started and completed every running interval when instructed and not a second before or after the command was screamed into my ear by the apps Drill Sargent. I could feel my body losing strength as I knew the interval was ending but I just told my self no, at one point I actually said it out loud, thankfully to an empty trail, and it worked.

From here on out the app just starts ramping things up so it appears that I've discovered this new mental ability just in time.

My first morning run

Happy Easter!

Confession: I haven't been running on the weekends. Why? Well because as much as I might intend to my husband is usually around and I find him incredibly distracting. As he isn't a runner so we usually end up deciding on a mutually enjoyable activity. However, I suspect now that the weather is nicer I'll have the opportunity to run on the weekends while he's out on his motorcycle. So don't crash into him!!  

Running during the week is so easy for me because it's part of my day. All of my coworkers know where I go and why at this point it would be weird if I didn't. I'm not sure what I would even do with myself in the middle of the day at this point if I didn't go running. 

The nature of working in healthcare is that you're open 24/7 which means that every so often I do end up working on a weekend manning the phones. I don't work as long of a day as I do during the week though so there's no running for me at lunch time. Since I had only run 4 times this week (wasn't up for running on the snow on Wednesday, WTF snow?!) I figured I would try to get a run in on the trail before since I would be at work  anyway.

Typically at work I spend my lunch hour as such: change into running clothes, warm up walk to trail, run to trail, cool down walk back, stretch, try my best to bathe in the sink and put my work clothes back on. This doesn't even take me a full hour, I have time left over to heat up lunch and attack a liter of water like I've spent a year in the Sahara.

When you take into account that I wouldn't be heating up food and I was already in my running clothes arriving at work an hour before I needed to be there was really more than enough time. I gave myself a little extra warm up time because it was only 36 degrees out and I'm not quite used to that, maybe next year.

It was pretty much business as usual when I headed out, saw a lot more dogs than normal, one that even looked big enough to be a bear cub. There were more people than I've ever seen before which I liked because I don't actually mind saying hi to strangers as much as I might think I do and just in case of an emergency it always feels safer when people are around.

So off I went, running down the trail, lost in my breathing and focusing on people in front of me to see if I could over take them. Suddenly I realized I was farther on the trail than I had ever been before. Turns out the app I use that prompts my intervals and tracks my distance/speed didn't yell at me to turn around at the halfway point which should have happened nearly 10 minutes prior.

Oh crap.

This is the part where I should mention that the return trip on the trail usually goes a little bit slower as it's a gradual up hill adventure. I'm plugging away but the panic over the realization that I might not make it back in time spiked my adrenalin and it's quickly wearing off. I can feel the anxiety creeping in and suddenly my legs feel like jello.

Then in the distance I see the little old man I past earlier, still plugging away up the hill like a champ. I decided to focus on him. I matched his pace and focused on him instead of the size of the hill we were climbing. Bless his obviously in shape ticker, he did not falter once, which really worked out for me because if he had I would have lost all drive and done a slow sad walk the whole way back.

Once the incline was less severe I was able to finish the trail with a bit more vigor that was inspired by the thought of someone coming into the office and finding me a sweaty mess if I didn't have enough time to change.

Turns out I made it with time to spare and was able to get presentable before office hours started but only because I skipped stretching before changing. Don't yell at me I was able to get it done at my desk shortly after and even used a cubical for legs up the wall.

Because of the app screw up I don't have my paces for today but I do know the total distance was 3.49mi which blows the day before out of the water, I'm sticking with my current interval training though so I won't be passing that one for a while, unless of course there is another blunder.

My First Therapeutic Run

Yeah, I run under power lines, what of it?

This is the trail that the nice man at the running store recommended to me and every time I set foot on it I remind myself that I really need to send him a big Thank You. There is really no contest between running on the trail and running on the sidewalks in town. I absolutely prefer the peace, quiet and tranquility that comes with running the rail trail. No crosswalks to worry about, no school demon children throwing stuff over the fence at me during recess (they threw chunks of ice once), and no wondering if the approaching car is slowing down on an otherwise empty road to kidnap me.

There was an incident at work yesterday first thing in the morning where I suddenly found myself in some really confusing headspace to the point where I couldn't even pull up my big girl panties and talk it out because I was so emotional. To put it mildly I was an absolute mess on the inside and just barely holding it together on the outside.

Lunch time came around and I suited up and hit the trail at first I tried to think things out but the anxiety that caused just made it harder to breath which of course makes it harder to run. So I just focused on my breathing and saying hello to the people I passed on the trail.

[That's how much I like the trail, I go way out of my comfort zone and feel compelled to be friendly to everyone I see so because I imagine if I'm not someone will kick me out.]

Not only did this lead to my fastest pace 9:51 min per mile run and my longest distance at 2.69 mi but when I was done all my anxiety was gone, I hadn't thought about what was bothering me at all but I already felt better about it and was calm enough to pull it together and talk about the situation like an adult. Of course it turns out that everything was a gigantic misunderstanding but it probably would have ruined my weekend if I didn't get it straightened out and I'm not sure I could have done that without my run. 

Splish Splash

Yesterday was the first time since I started running at lunch time that it was raining when it was time for me to go out. I've been really lucky to either have it stop shortly before or start after my run. I knew I had two choices I could either stay inside and try to entertain myself for an hour away from my desk so my boss wouldn't kill me or I could just do it.

My thought process was that if I still had a dog I would still take her out in this weather and aren't my needs just as important? I think they are. So out I went into the drizzle armed with my lucky Giants hat and my rain jacket over my usual running gear.

By the time I made it down to the trail I realized that I had been mistaken about a couple of things, this was not just a drizzle but an all out downpour and my "rain" jacket was barely a water resistant garment. I kept at it though, moving down the trail, dodging puddles, enjoying the solitude and feeling the mud kick up on the back of my legs, it reminded me of being a kid again.

I arrived up back at work with fogged up glasses and completely soaked through to the bone. Oddly enough the only complaint I had about my first run in the rain was that I forgot to set the screen lock on my phone during so the program I use to track my distance accidentally deleted my progress before I could log it. I can't say that I'd prefer to run in the rain all the time but I certainly don't mind it as much as I thought I might. I will say that it helps that it was about 60 degrees out, running in cold rain is probably not as pleasant.

My first pair of real running shoes

I've always been secretly interested in running but never really got around to it, I was unsure of myself and as silly as it sounds didn't really know where to start. I tried it a few times but never really put much effort into it and never really had any specific goals in mind so I just kind of lost interest. 

A few weeks ago my boss sat me down to have a chat about all the extra hours I was putting in. It hadn't gone unnoticed that I was coming in earlier and earlier and spending my lunch break at my desk. We agreed on a new schedule for me and she made me promise to stick to it. So there I was suddenly banned from my office for an entire hour in the middle of the day. For reasons that I do not fully understand I finally decided to go for it and spend my hour of exile running.

I quickly discovered how much I actually do enjoy running but could tell from the get go that the shoes I was wearing were all wrong for what I was trying to do. The minute I was done with my warm up my feet started to ache and every footfall just seemed to make it worse, yet the minute I stopped I was fine. Cross trainers are great shoes but not for pounding the pavement. I've heard horror stories due to improper shoe related injuries so I was all too aware of how important it was to invest in my footwear.

However, the only thing that I did know was that I knew absolutely nothing about running shoes. I decided that going to Dick's or Sport Authority wasn't going to cut it for me. The staff just isn't knowledgeable enough for my comfort level. All I know about my feet is that my arches are high but as much as I googled pronate I still couldn't figure out how I could get that information from myself, by myself. So I asked my personal trainer where she recommended I go and she sent me to this little local running store that I unknowingly drive by everyday on my way to and from work.

Even though I was tipped off about this place by a very reliable source I was still terrified to walk in there and found myself secretly hoping it was closed when I arrived so I could spare myself the awkwardness. I imagined a store full of seasoned runners scoffing at me as I shuffled in encased in my cloud of cluelessness. Boy, was I wrong. The shop was small and cluttered but I can appreciate organized chaos. The man behind the counter was chatting with a customer who was on his way out with an air of openness and familiarity. It turns out that the man behind the counter was the owner, Mark, and he could not have been more friendly or supportive which immediately put me at ease. He asked me a few questions, congratulated me on my decision to take up running, laughed at my converse because that's all he had for running shoes when he was in college and even made recommendations for safer locations for me to run on my lunch break, turns out there's a really great rail trail that I've been running right by every day without even knowing it! 

Then he looked at my feet, watched me walk and used a mat connected to a computer system to see what kind of feet we were dealing with. Turns out he and I have the same kind of feet so he understood my concerns first hand. Also, he claims that my super high arches make me a faster runner compared to someone with flat feet. I refuse to even look up if that's true or not because I'd like to think that I have superpower feet when I start to feel like I can't go that extra mile. Once he had all the information he vanished for 10 seconds and then presented me with a pair of shoes. No options, no decisions, just "here you go". He even showed me a better way to lace them up so they wouldn't fly off and then to my surprise he sent me outside to run in the parking lot and around the building. 

I felt like I was running on clouds. There was absolutely no trace of the horrible ache I experience in my old shoes and I felt like I could actually pick up my feet and go faster. The experience with the right shoe is night and day from what I have been dealing with. When he signaled me to run back to him I felt like a million bucks and didn't even mind that he invaded my personal space with a congratulatory pat on the back. He complimented me on my form and stride and the fact that I seemed confident in my gait instead of shuffling along like most people do when he asks them to run. 

So the shoes were mine, I didn't even care that they were purple (I'm so sorry to the rest of the world who seems to worship that color but my god how I hate it), they seemed like the right shoe for me. Mark explained to me that if there was anything about the shoes I didn't like I could come back and we would work on it. He also encouraged me to sign up for my first race and invited me to come running on Friday nights with a group that meets at the store. I'm really hoping I take him up on that and don't let my shyness and uncertainty get in the way. 

As someone who spent years in retail the high level of customer service he provided completely blew me away. If you're anywhere near Connecticut I would highly recommend Kilometers in Ridgefield to anyone who needs running shoes especially if like me you are unsure of where to start. 

So I know what you shoe junkies are thinking, what shoe did you end up with? Turns out my equating the shoes to running on clouds was dead on. I ended up with the On Cloudsurfer:

Described on their website as such: Equipped with On’s patented CloudTec® system, the Cloudsurfer is light, agile and excellent at transforming running energy into forward momentum, in training runs as well as competitions.
Fast feels good: the adaptive sole balances every step and activates your postural muscles. The Cloudsurfer intelligently combines what conventional running shoes have failed to unite: a cushioned landing and a barefoot takeoff.

Now, obviously can't even begin to compare this shoe to any type of running shoe but my experience thus far certainly backs up their statement. 

We get older every day

I feel like Nick has pretty much summed exactly how I'm feeling about my impending birthday. 

Also, I'm addicted to gifs right now, sorry. 

I feel like this week has been full of signs that I'm getting older and while I might be shaking my head I'm also laughing a whole lot. 

For instance when saying "it's a quarter after three" a youngster informed me that 15 does not equal a quarter. So like any old geezer I dragged his butt to a real clock to explain where the phrase came from. Mostly he just starred at me like I'd suddenly started speaking Latin so I couldn't resist asking him if he knew what a rotary phone was, he told me he didn't have a phone yet but he had an ipad. 

Monday morning it sleeted and snowed and it was just generally horrible, I drove to work thinking about just crashing into a ditch in order to finally escape from this endless winter. Mother nature took mercy on me and around lunch time Spring showed up out of the blue and seems to be here at least for a little which is fine by me. The sudden spike in temperature and sunshine has just lifted my mood and made me antsy, I just can't seem to stay in the house unless I have to, I need to be outside, I missed it so much. So I've taken to running by the lake again which is proving to be treacherous with all the pot holes & old sand on the road. Enter: marathon compression socks. Thanks to Salt for the heads up on these. 

A gift from The Beef who knows what a horrible monster I'll be if an injury traps me in the house during my beloved spring. I'm not saying compression socks used for safety is what makes me old, that just makes me smart, it was the fact that I did a legit happy dance over them that shows I'm getting old.

I do have some more happy/sad news, I am no longer Batman as I have regained the ability to turn my head again.

Hope you're not reading this at night. ;)