Five Miles

Ran 5 miles today! Feeling great success, ran it in 50 minutes flat. Lately I've had a hard time motivating myself to get out there and run in the cold. I know for many people that is still really slow, but for me it felt great! I needed this run. What a great feeling!

7 miles

I ran 7 miles today. It took me 76 minutes. I'm feeling discouraged over the time, but happy that I did it. I guess I should take the ice and snow into consideration, they sure didn't speed me up at all. I actually feel better today than I did after six miles last Saturday. So much of this is mental. It's amazing. I kind of hate running, (especially while I'm running) but I sure do love the feeling of accomplishment that comes afterward!

New Years Eve

At 6 p.m. on News Years Eve, most people were probably getting ready to go out. Not me, of course I had procrastinated my 4 mile run until then. Since the sun had already gone down it was pretty stinking cold. As I ran through the snow, snot dripped down my face and froze to my upper lip. It was pretty gross. Something akin to the Aspen mo-ped scene in Dumb and Dumber. My eye lashes even froze to my eyelids! I am happy I finished that run though! Now I'm trying to decide which is worse, running through snow/ice or running on a tiny indoor track. Right now I'm opting for snow and ice, although I may give the indoor track a whirl next week. . .

Merry Christmas!

I had to run tonight. My idea of hell is running on Christmas, in the dark, before eating the lovely dinner I had prepared. However, I knew that if I didn't do it, I would have failed myself. I also knew that if I ate dinner first, I wouldn't run. So, all in all, I feel like I succeeded tonight, although at what I'm not quite sure. After a long day of presents and snowshoeing, I went running.

On a happy note, my daughter is truly amazing. I seriously think she is the best personal trainer out there. She rides her bike beside me and keeps me motivated with words of encouragement. My favorite thing that she says is, "Look at the stars mom. They're millions of people cheering for you." Tonight, she also added a few other comments to keep me going. As I was nearing a hill she said, "Relax your shoulders. Listen to your breathing. Watch your pace, save that momentum for the hill." How did she even know to say that?!? As I was passing the halfway point on the hill she said, "Pick up the pace mom. Do you see the finish line at the top? SEE THE FINISH LINE." She even said something about dogs chasing me to get me running a little faster. She's amazing. How many 10 year old's would leave their new toys to go cheer their mom on during a run, in the dark, on Christmas?

Anaerobic Threshold

So I'm studying quite a bit about anaerobic threshold training for distance runners. My understanding is that you can improve your time significantly (like more than a minute per mile for novice runner's.) I wonder if anyone has looked into this or knows anything about it? My curiosity is officially peaked!

Good Run

It's amazing to me that I can have a really painful, overwhelming run one week, and then the next week increase my miles and have a great run, pain free. So, I suppose the takeaway message here, is that I need to keep myself 'mentally' Succeeding regardless of what my body is doing. I'm a big believer in positive affirmations. Although, I still find myself wondering how I will be able to get to 26.2 miles. Whew! I guess I shouldn't think about it yet.

Pain :/

O.K. so between running with my hubs (and trying to keep up with him!) and weightlifting. I think I overdid it a little this week. I also increased miles. First time I have ever had what feels like shin splints. So, this brings up a good question. How can you tell the difference between O.K. pain (the kind that is good for increasing muscle mass) and injury pain?