National Running Day & Charity Running

So, it's National Running Day. That's exciting.

I had a 5 mile run scheduled this afternoon, because I'm training for the Chicago Marathon again. It's week one, day two of my training plan. Yesterday, day one, went well, a little bit slower than I would have liked, but that's how it goes sometimes. Today, I ran with my mom and still, was quite a bit slower than I would have liked, but it's a process, I suppose. (that's the point of training, right?)

As some of you know, I did not get into the Chicago Marathon this year via lottery. I was disappointed when I found out, to be quite honest, but my mind started running for a few weeks. I have been toying with the idea of running a marathon for a charity for a long time- several years. I've considered a few different charities over the years, but, most recently, I've really connected with the Alzheimer's association. There are a number of reasons for that, but it has all been pretty impacted by my grandma and her journey with the disease.

My grandma's journey started back in 1997 when she was pretty healthy, active, and only 51 years old. It all started with a stroke, then multiple strokes. Over the past 18 years, Alzheimer's has slowly taken over her brain. In the past ten years, since I went to college, it became more progressive. My Nana M went from being "silly" or "goofy" to clear signs of Alzheimer's. Now that I have moved back to my hometown, I've really been able to see the changes in her. It isn't easy, but it has really opened my eyes.

Anyways, so I decided a couple of weeks ago to run the Chicago Marathon on behalf of the Alzheimer's Association. The Alzheimer's Association is a charity that I STRONGLY believe in.

I'm looking forward to this journey, the training, raising the money, and running on behalf of the Alzheimer's Association.

But, beyond that, I'm really doing this with my Nana M in mind. (also, my Great Grandma Walter, and my Great Aunt Cathy) This disease is personal for me and has been a part of my family for a long time. So, yes, I'm pretty excited about this, but also pretty nervous. I think that I will train harder and hope to do better than I have for any races in the past.

Nana M & I at a race expo back in 2011

Finally getting my groove back

Today, I ran.
I feel like I should be proud of my accomplishment, considering what a hectic few weeks that I've had. So I am a little proud. At the same time, I'm somewhat disappointed that I have taken way too much time off of running lately.

There's no purpose to beating myself up about it, though.

Today, I did ten miles. My goal was somewhere between 9 and 15, but I had a late start, so I sorta knew that 15 was out of the picture. I really don't want to kill myself with running before two weeks of races, also. (Whose idea was that...?!)

My ten miles went really well. I did about 6.5 of them with Katherine and the rest by myself. She caught up with me after she got home from work and changed. My legs felt awesome until the last mile or so, then I started to get worn out. I'm a little concerned about that, considering Chicago is less than two weeks away. I just have to keep pushing it and thinking positive thoughts. Racing feels a lot different than training for some reason. Too often, training runs feel like they drag on endlessly.

I've also noticed that I've started getting really hungry. All of the time. It started at about the time that I started kicking up my training in late June and early July. I'm not sure if it is normal or not. I guess that it probably is a normal thing when training so many hours per week. I just need to start focusing on eating correctly rather than constantly consuming crappy food. I have weight I want to lose and I want my body to be at it's best. That's my goal. I'm tired of being stuck in the same weight range, when I know that I have another 20 pounds to lose.

I've signed up for this year's Triathlon Challenge. It's an October month long challenge through the UCF gym to try to complete an Ironman distance race within the month of October. I did it last year and the bike was REALLY tough. I'm toying with the idea of doing a triathlon in Indiana next summer, so I think this will help me get my head on straight. I also think I can do it a little bit more successfully than I did last year. 

Anyways. Ten miles today in the books. Lots of fun. Good run for once. Back at it tomorrow.

Goal: 1000 miles/366 days

So far: 621.01 miles/268 days

To go: 378.99 miles/98 days

Wipe out!

I've had the most intense week and a half.
I'm not even 100% where to start with this. It's been so crazy.

I think I wrote about it, but last Monday, I was in a car accident. I've had my car in the shop since last Saturday and it's been so frustrating to not have a car. I should have gotten a rental car, but I really thought I'd have my car back by now. I know that it's not really anybody's specific fault. It's just a frustrating situation. I should have my car back early next week. (fingers crossed!)
[I'm super thankful for having a really awesome best friend who has been willing to go out of her way to drive me around.]

That's her!

So anyways, I have been majorly slacking on my running lately. I've also been extremely stressed out about school and my car. I've been putting in a lot of time looking for a full time job. I'm two weeks away from being 26, which means that I come off of my mom's health insurance soon. (as a person with epilepsy, it is pretty important that I stay insured.) I've had a lot on my mind. I guess that running hasn't been working out so well for me. I do need to try to keep my focus though. It's really a prime example of how life can knock a person down... and then kick the same person at the same time. (a few times.) That's sort of what I feel like I've been dealing with lately.

So. I have two runs that I haven't posted about. It's been a week since I've last posted and I've only run twice. That's a little bit sad. But oh well. It's all in having a positive attitude. I just have to keep picking myself up every day. 

Last Thursday, I went for a run after class. I went to the gym with a friend from class. It was fun. We ran on the treadmill, which I hate, but we talked a lot and it was fun. It didn't even feel like I spent an hour on the treadmill. I'm glad I did it! I almost didn't go to the gym, because I had opened at work. Then I had three hours of class. I just didn't want to deal with it. I did, though. I ended up with about four and a quarter miles in a little over an hour. Not terrible.

Today, I opened at work. I was super upset when I got home, because I thought that I'd get to pick up my car today. No such luck. Anyways, I decided that I wasn't going to run today. Then, Katherine got home. She convinced me to run with her. We actually had an awesome run! We aimed for 5 miles, but saw a thunderstorm coming, so we decided to just wing it. We did end up making it to 5 miles! However, I definitely tripped over something. (I'm still not sure what.) I fell hard onto the ground. I skinned two knees and both hands. I feel like I bruised my shoulder, too, but I'm not 100% sure about that. I haven't looked yet. 

It was a little funny, because, when I fell, I jumped right back up because I was worried about my Garmin and my pace. haha. That's a sign of a certain kind of runner. ;-) Anyways, we kept going (after slowing down a lot) and still finished the 5 miles. I'm definitely glad I went today!!

Battle wounds. haha.

Anyways, fun times. hopefully, I get my car back soon. 

Goal: 1000 miles/366 days

So far: 611.8 miles/264 days

To go: 388.2 miles/102 days

Huge milestone: 600 miles!

I feel like I have been so exhausted lately that I haven't had much to say in this blog. It's awful. I've been so busy managing school, work, and running and combining it with looking for a "real" job that I just haven't had time to think through my thoughts, let alone write them down. However, here I am, trying my hardest to put my thoughts into words.

I was in a car accident on the way to work on Monday. It was fairly minor, but it was my fault and I feel like an idiot. I wasn't paying attention for a second. That's all it takes. I'm an intelligent enough person to k now that I need to do better... and be better. I'm a little disgusted with myself. ..that's life though. I'll move on and things will get better.

Today, I opened at work, then worked 7-4:30. On my way home, I was exhausted. I didn't want to run, but I knew that I had to. I knew that I needed to stick to the training plan. Chicago is just a few weeks away and I want to do the best that I can.

So Kath and I did a 10 miler today. It got dark in the middle of it, which was good and bad. Unfortunately, the path we run on is not well lit, so we had to do a few laps around out apartment complex. (That is NOT my favorite thing to do, by the way.) I think I need a headlamp for night runs. For real. It was nice and cool out, though, which was fantastic! I'm very excited about the weather!!

I'm toying with the idea of going to the gym to get my 4 miler in after class. I will open at work again, then will go straight to class.. so I would be on campus anyways. I just really don't like treadmill running at all. It would be nice to get it done, though... I don't know. We'll see what I decide.

So that's it. Oh! I've hit 600 miles for the year! Yeaaaaaaaah!!! I'm getting closer and closer to my goal.
(I am in the 300s left toward my goal!)

Goal: 1000 miles/366 days
So far: 602.51 miles/256 days
To go: 397.49 miles/110 days

rough day.

I am so tired. And life is so crazy. I got in a minor car accident yesterday on my way to work and it took TWO hours to get the police there and everything taken care of, so I didn't make it to work. Awful. Then today, I was feeling very sorry for myself and didn't want to run at all. I still went, though, so at least there's that.

So yeah. Five miles down. While I was running, I definitely started to feel a little bit better about things. I know that life will work out. I just need to keep putting myself out there and not give up. It was good to run and think about my life. I'm glad I went, even though I REALLY REALLY did not want to go. At all. Not even a little.

I also had softball today. Our first game that didn't get rained out! Yeah fun!

Goal: 1000 miles/366 days

So far: 592.28 miles/255 days
To go: 407.72 miles/111 days

Trying to be the best I can be.

Seven miles has not been as tough as it was today for a long time. My legs felt like lead and my mind just was not into it. However, I powered through.

I could complain about how tired I was and how much I wanted to give up for... 6 of the 7 miles, but I won't. It would be too monotonous... and whiny. I'm pretty sure that it would even annoy me.

A few good things about today's run:

• It is done! Seven more miles in the books. I can't believe how close I am to being at the Chicago Marathon right now. Insane..
• It was supposed to storm all afternoon, which I was dreading. It didn't. I just heard thunder outside... six hours after my run.. It was nice to have a dry run for once.
• I passed a few people on my run today. (That hardly happens. Unless the people are walking.) That was in the first few miles, though. I definitely slowed down after mile 4.

"If you want to become the best runner you can be, start now. Don't spend the rest of your life wondering if you can do it." -Priscilla Welch

Goal: 1000 miles/366 days
So far:  587.27 miles/253 days
To go: 412.73 miles/113 days

Long run day again. 15 miles.

This is (was) my first long run day in a couple of weeks! I was scheduled 15 miles, which didn't really feel awful when I thought about it.

Unfortunately, I didn't get off of work until late last night (or early this morning). Because of that, I overslept this morning.. and didn't get up until after 11. I hate that. I wake up frustrated and annoyed when I oversleep, especially when I'm supposed to have a long run. Katherine was off work today, so we planned to run together. We waited until a little after 2 to leave, knowing that some rain was coming in. We hoped that the rain would cool us off (and hopefully the weather too!).

The first two and a half miles were really warm, almost miserably so. It started raining when we were almost to mile 3. It came down pretty hard, so we ran to Walgreen's to hide out for a little bit. When it looked like it was slowing down, we continued forward. Then it started pouring again. That time we didn't have anywhere to hide out, so we just kept going.

After the rain finally stopped, the weather had cooled down quite a bit, too. That was nice. We ended up running the 15 miles in about 3:50, which is a slower pace than I would have liked, but wasn't terrible for a long slow run day. I won't say that I'm not a little disappointed, because I am. I know that I can run at a faster pace. I'm still trying to figure out why it's so tough to get myself faster during training runs. I guess it's just something that I need to work on.. push myself a little more or something.

I'm trying to take off a little bit more weight before Chicago. I want to be at a decent race weight. I know that I'm four weeks away from the race tomorrow, but I think that I can lose another 5-8 pounds in that time. I'm working on eating right. (except last night when I picked up fast food on the way home from work. ugh.) It's crazy hot Chicago is on my mind all of the time.

Anyyyyways... I guess that's all I have to say about today. haha.
(I'm so close to 600 miles!)

Goal: 1000 miles/366 days
So far: 580.1 miles/252 days
To go: 419.9 miles/114 days

Still pushing through...

Being back in the swing of life is exhausting! Yesterday, I was a little busy getting some things accomplished before my softball game (that got rained out. we're three for three on rain outs... Go us!), but I was still able to get a 4 miler in. Today, all I had planned was homework, job searching, and my run, but it was rough! (tomorrow is another run and class.) It's been tough to manage my time since I got back from California. It doesn't help that my body had just gotten used to west coast time when it was time to come back to Florida.

Today was a 9 mile run. It was hot. Miserably so. I really didn't feel like being out there the entire time that I was there. It was a little awful. I wanted to quit the entire time. There's something inside of me that doesn't give up, though. I continued to push forward throughout the entire run and ended up with a just under 15 minute mile pace. Normally, I'd be disappointed, but today, I just wasn't interested in running, so it was okay.

Sometimes, what counts the most is getting out there and doing it. Today was one of those days. Tomorrow may be better... I hope.

Goal: 1000 miles/366 days
So far: 557.04 miles/249 days
To go: 442.96 miles/117 days

Disneyland Half Marathon Recap

I have been AWFUL. I didn't run for a little over a week... after all of this time living by my training plan, I just stopped. Ugh. I'm extremely frustrated with myself, but trying not to beat myself up about it too much. I know that I can just deal with it and move on.

SO. Disneyland Half Marathon race report!
I have officially added a third state to my "states that I've raced in" list. (Indiana, Florida, and California! ...and Illinois is next!)

My mom, sister, and Katherine came to California. We have dubbed ourselves "Team 3 Catholics and a Protestant." We've been planning the Disneyland Half Marathon trip since January, when we decided that we wanted to do the Coast to Coast Challenge. Basically, to participate, a person has to run in a RunDisney half or full marathon in both California and Florida. Back in January, Kath and Kailey (my baby sister) ran the "Donald" half marathon, while my mom and I participated in the "Goofy Challenge" (half & full in two days). (to be honest, I did the 5k, too, so I'm, unofficially, "Dopey". I also ran the Princess half in February.) So yes. That's when we decided to do the Coast to Coast.

We had so much fun! None of us had ever been to Disneyland, so it was fun experiencing the parks and the surrounding areas. We got to do so many fun things. But the most fun... was running.

We got up at 4:00 California time (7 my time) for the race on Sunday morning. We all whined and dragged ourselves out of bed to depart at 4:30.. or that was the goal. I don't think we left the hotel until closer to 4:45. Then my mom realized she forgot her parfait, which is her traditional race morning breakfast. Then she realized she forgot her Minnie ears, which she was looking forward to wearing. The last straw was when she realized that she did not have her ipod, either. That's when she went back to the room. The rest of us trudged onward without her. (my mom ended up catching a shuttle to the start while the other three of us walked! not even fair.)

We all started together in Corral D and planned to run together to the first character photo opportunity. Then the race started and we started running. Somehow, I got into a really nice groove and then realized that I was running without anybody on my "team". Oops. Then Kath caught up with me and we ran together to the first photo stop.

Green Army Men! A RunDisney picture tradition.

After that, Kath ran ahead and I stayed in my groove. I felt really good and didn't really have to take walk breaks at all, which really surprised me. It is really the first race that was like that for me. When we got into Disneyland Park, I saw Katherine in line for a picture and jumped in with her. 

How could I resist Tiana, Naveen, and Louis?!

We decided to run through the rest of the park together and stop for pictures when we could, knowing that the majority of the race did not take part on Disney property. So we did. We had to run through some pretty intense crowds, but overall, we did pretty well and passed a lot of people. (I feel like my pace has really improved and I didn't really know until Sunday.) 

The rest of the race was really fun! (I didn't get many pictures, but that's okay.) We ran through the Anaheim Angels' baseball stadium, which was awesome. It was really crowded, though, and on the way out, I twisted my right ankle trying to pass people. (Yep. The one that I've hurt countless times in the past.) I decided to walk the rest of the race and throw out all hope of getting an awesome finishing time. I knew I had to be careful, because I REALLY want to do well in Chicago. As much as I wanted to finish strong, I knew I shouldn't push it. So I walked. For three. Long. Miles.

The Team!

The race was fun though. I had a fantastic time! (the vacation part was great too!) I want to go back! 

I'm back to Chicago training though. Kath and I did four easy (EASY) miles today and it was fun. It's nice to be back in the swing of things. (sort of. I still want to go back.)

Goal: 1000 miles/366 days

So far: 547.8 miles/248 days

To go: 452.2 miles/118 days

Too many excuses, not enough work...

My mileage so far this week has been awful. So awful that I've come up with an excuse for it. Are you ready?

I probably should be tapering anyways so I don't kill all of my energy before Disneyland next weekend.

Good excuse or poor excuse, I'm not sure, but I'm embarrassed. There is no excuse for me not wanting to do my runs, but I just haven't wanted to. I haven't felt like it. Awful, right?

First, I'm dog sitting. This is Finn (and Katherine):

Don't get me wrong. I love dogs. Finn is one of the most laid back dogs that I have ever met. Yet, I find myself feeling bad for leaving him alone for periods of time, because I know he's already stressed out that his dad went on a cruise without him. He also wakes me up before I want to wake up because he needs to go outside. Generally, he's a great dog, though, so I'm lucky as far as that goes. I'm also staying at Finn's (Seth's) apartment right now. That means new running routes that I have to figure out on my own. Another excuse.

Along with that, I've been missing this face for the past week:

On Wednesday, my car wouldn't start. A new alternator and new battery later, I have Lola the car back, but not without a hefty bill. Just what I needed.

Yesterday, class started for me for the semester! Woo hoo! I'm so close to my Masters, I can almost feel it. I'm just exhausted and stressed out about it already. I have really high expectations for myself this semester. I know that I CAN do it. I just need to push myself hard enough to do it. I'm also REALLY stressed about finding a full time job in my field. I don't even know where to begin my search.

So. Much. Stress.
So that's why I've been slacking. Those are all of the excuses that I've been running through my head. I already know I won't be doing my 20 miler on Sunday. I'm planning to cut it to like... 9 or 10, because of time constraints and a semi-taper before California. Ugh.

I'm drained.

I did four miles on Tuesday after work and four miles today before work. I guess that's something.

Goal: 1000 miles/366 days
So far: 530.15 miles/237 days
To go: 469.85 miles/129 days

Crazy 18 mile training run

Let's talk about long run day. Again.

18 miles.
Did I mention that I've never followed a training plan before? For ANY of my races in the history of my running life (three years). Never ever. I've decided that I was going to do it and then just not followed through many times. (ten half marathons, two full marathons, one 10k, and several 5ks)

This time I'm following a plan. (minus when my toe was smashed and I was put out of commission for a few days) I almost didn't. I didn't want to do 18 miles today. I couldn't sleep last night and woke up after about 4-5 hours, thinking that 18 sounded horrible. I was tired before I started and that just sucked. A lot.

Kath and I ran together, thank goodness. I'm not 100% sure that I could have done it without her. Somehow, we did it though. Kath had never run further than 14 miles in her life and, like I said, outside of a race, I've never run that distance before. It was rough, to be honest. Beyond rough. I'm drained and exhausted and my legs still feel like they are on fire.

But we did it! We got stuck in a crazy storm for a while and we had to stop at Publix and wait it out. There was no way that I was going to risk crazy lightning. It was good though. Sort of like cheating, but not really. You have to do what you have to do in times like that. I felt AWESOME between miles 4-15. When I got to 15.5-16, I started to feel miserable. It's sort of like the emotional stuff that I've gone through during the marathons that I've run. I get these really intense highs and lows, but I think that's normal(ish). It's at least normal during a race. I'm not sure that I like it though.

I am sort of elated that I finished my run today. Next week's long run is 20 miles. I do NOT have my mind wrapped around that at this time. Wow.........................

(plus, I've joined the work softball time plus my class starts this week.)

Goal: 1000 miles/366 days
So far: 522.01 miles/233 days
To go: 477.99 miles/133 days

short & sweet 3 miler

Where does all of the time go in this life? I feel like this day just started, but in an hour, I'll be clocking in at work. That's insane to me. I don't understand how it all happens.

I don't really have time to write about today's run. It was rainy, but not scary stormy. I ran semi-quickly. A little over 12 minute miles, which is good for me, especially considering how awfully slow that I have been lately. Every day, I am getting better, regardless of how freaked out I am about Chicago. I have many MANY races to worry about before Chicago happens.

Anyways, just over three miles at just over a 12 minute pace. I'll take it.

Goal: 1000 miles/366 days
So far: 504 miles/230 days
To go: 496 miles/136 days

(p.s. oh wow! I didn't realize that I evened out my numbers today!)

celebrating 500 miles in 2012! (so far!)

So this is crazy! I'm officially past 500 miles for the year. I'm SO excited about it. So. SO. excited. I know that I'm late for the year and I'm past the  month mark, but I really feel like I can get to the mileage that I want to get to. (that being 1000 miles in one year. which lots of people have done for many years.)

Yesterday, I ran with Seth for the first time in the history of ever. We didn't take any pictures while running to post to the blog (oops), but it was fun! I was really nervous, because I haven't run with anybody besides my mom and Katherine. I am always pretty self conscious about my pace, especially when I'm running with someone that I know is faster than me. We worked really well together and I had a lot of fun! I'm really excited about it and next time, I won't have to be nervous about running with Seth! haha. (but I will definitely continue to be nervous about running with other people. beyond him. and Kath.)

We ran 8 miles, so we both felt pretty much like beasts afterwards. That's because we are beasts. But ya know.

Today, I was thinking about pushing my run off until tomorrow, because I didn't get much sleep and was beyond tired. However, my computer was acting up, so I went. I did 9 miles in a 14:50-ish pace, which I'm really proud of, because it was terribly hot outside. So yeah. That is really fun news! My legs are a little tired, but I mostly feel awesome right now.

I'm still terrified about Chicago, but I'm also feeling really awesome about how my training is going. My pace is a little awful all of the time, but I think that part of the problem is that I have been worn out and the heat in Central Florida is really tough to run in. What worries me the most is that I'm starting toward the end of Chicago so there is potential that it could be REALLY warm outside. That freaks me out, honestly. I know the midwest and I know that early October in the midwest could be nice or awful. We'll find out.

I'm SO excited to be at 500 miles. Yeeeah me!

Goal: 1000 miles/366 days
So far: 500.78 miles/229 days
To go: 499.22 miles/137 days

running in the rain.

I feel like time is going by so quickly and slowly at the same time. I'm so confused about what day of the week it is. All. Of. The. Time. So today was back to running after yesterday's rest day. I was slated for 4 miles-easy.

I decided that I was going to try to do my 4 miles at a 2/1 interval pace. I've never done intervals before and I'm running with Seth for the first time tomorrow and we're doing 2/1 intervals. I wanted to make sure that I can do it. It was going really well until the clouds started rolling in. I saw them and thought that I should continue running, because I wanted to get the mileage in. Then the thunder started. That's when I thought it was probably time to turn around. At the same time, if I went a quarter of a mile further, I knew I'd be able to get the four miles in. So I kept going.

By the time I finally turned around, there was zero reason for me to keep trying to do intervals. I killed it running home. I sprinted, took short walk breaks, and sprinted more. Serious speedwork, except it was mostly because I didn't want to get killed by lightning. At one point, there was lightning striking in front of me, behind me, and beside me.

Did I mention that my two biggest fears in the world are storms and seagulls? When I was in third grade, a tornado touched down nearby my school. I remember the power going out to the school and all of the students freaking out. We all prayed together (Catholic School), including our principal, Sr. Alice Marie. I have never been the same since. No joke. I hate storms. They make me nervous and afraid and I turn into a 9 year old again. Every time.

So I was running in the midst of (one of) my biggest fear(s). I prayed. And sprinted. I made it home in one piece, too. I was drenched in rain and felt gross and terrified. I completed my four miles, though. My pace was 12:20 minute miles. I'm amazed with myself. I was stuck in a 14-15 minute mile pace funk and now I'm out. I can do really awesome things.

I just have to face my fears.
Wow, that was cheesy!

Goal: 1000 miles/366 days
So far: 483.34 miles/227 days
To go: 516.66 miles/139 days

...something to say about motivation.

I don't really have time to write. I have to leave for work in five minutes or so. Blah. (Did I tell you that I don't like working at night? Because I don't. It annoys me.)

Today Kath and I ran together. We did a little over eight and a half miles. It was really tough. For the first time outside of a race, I thought I was going to throw up. I've never felt sick during a training run before. I didn't even push myself too hard. I'm not sure what the problem was with my body. My breakfast was healthy and pretty light (a bagel with peanut butter and a slice of turkey ham). Ijust felt miserable. The. Whole. Time.

There's something to say for motivation though. I pulled it out in the end. I cut my average pace from 16 to 15:30 in the last three miles. (I'm really unhappy with that pace.) I'm glad I found the motivation to push past my barriers and move forward. I think that's pretty awesome.

I just wish I didn't have to dig so deep sometimes.

Goal: 1000 miles/366 days
So far: 479.34 miles/225 days
To go: 520.66 miles/141 days

positives and negatives on long run day.

Long run day recap. Again.

Let's start with the positive things that happened during my run today... First, I ran the distance that I needed to. Though my toe is still swollen, it doesn't hurt at all when I'm running and only hurts some when I'm walking around. (I think that it mostly depends on what shoes that I am wearing. My work shoes are awful at squishing my toes. Ugh.) I'm ecstatic that I'm running again. I'm pleased that I only had to take a week off before I could run again. I'm glad that I did fourteen miles today. It takes a lot of mental strength to push it that hard and for that long. Yay for me.

I just wish that it was easier. I struggled a LOT today. My legs felt heavy and slow from the very beginning. I'm not sure how I ended up getting all of the miles in. I guess that I pushed it pretty hard, but my pace was way slower than I would have wanted it to be. ...frustrating. I KNOW that I can run faster and better than I ran today. I just don't know why I didn't do it today. I know that I should be pleased that I got the mileage that I needed, but I feel like my pace is pretty important, too.

I'm less than two months away from Chicago. I'm about three weeks from Disneyland. Then Tower of Terror 10 miler, then Chicago, then Wine & Dine, then the Jacksonville Distance Classic, then the Orlando Half, then Goofy (Dopey)! This is crazy. I just really want to make sure that my body is ready for all of this. I'm not sure that it is, because of tough runs like I had today. Frustrating...

I know that I can run the distance. I just want to get my pace to where I need it to be. I'm just feeling a little stuck right now, I guess. I don't know what the answer is... the magical motivation that I've been looking for.

I'm at a completely different sport than where I was last year at this time. My body is different and my training is so muh better. Frankly, I have no idea what my race pace might be. It has to be something better. I feel like I'm looking PRs in the face, I just don't know what they would be.

I'm also planning on adding personal training back into my regimen. I need it desperately. I can't find the motivation to strength train on my own. Another frustration...

Kath & I at 13 miles. Today was her furthest run in the history of her life!

Goal: 1000 miles/366 days
So far: 470.74 miles/224 days
To go: 529.26 miles/142 days

3 cheers for being back to running.

I ran! (two days in a row!) I'm really excited about it.

I thought I was going to have to modify my distance in order to help work through the pain in my toe, but my toe really doesn't hurt at all when I run. I actually decided not to tape my toes today, because it seems like my foot is strained and I limp much more when I tape my toes together. The smushed toe is still swollen, but most of the bruising is gone now. I feel so much better. It's crazy how sad I was about my toe being injured. I thought I was going to have to lose a lot of my training in the next several days. Instead, I lost 3-4 days of training.  Yeah me!

So yesterday, I did four miles. It was the first run I'd done in a week and I felt great. It was awesome. I ran slowly, but I did what needed to be done. That's what really matters.

Today, I was scheduled 8 miles and I knew that I could do it. I did two miles, then Katherine came home from work and we finished out together. We had lots of good talks along the way. One fun thing about Katherine and I running together is that our pace has improved exponentially in the past few months. It used to be that we were pretty slow together and walked a lot. Now we can run much more quickly than we could before, so I'm excited about that. Lots of fun teamwork.

I'm exhausted, so that's all I have to say this time. ha. I'm just glad to be back!!

Goal: 1000 miles/366 days
So far: 456.66 miles/222 days
To go: 543.34 miles/144 days

i have toe woes...

I guess I should write about... why I haven't been running.

On Thursday, at work, I was pushing drink carts out.. and one thing led to another and my toes got run over.. by a 300-400 pound cart full of drinks and ice.

Yup. My pinkie toe was smushed and is now purple-ish (actually the bruises aren't so bad now). I'm pretty sure it was broken in the incident, but knowing that there's nothing that can medically be done for a broken toe, I've buddy taped it to my ring-finger-toe (is that even a real thing?!) and refrained from running. Since Thursday.

I've been crabby, irritable, mean, and in bad spirits since. I'm worried about my marathon training and about all of my races coming up. I'm trying to pray my toe better. I've been lazy and stayed off it. It has been miserable. I've gone from running 5 times a week to laying around. ALL THE TIME. No joke.

So yes. Chicago training has stopped. For now. I'm going to start using my spin bike as much as I can and lifting weights. I've also looked into buying a good bike that I can use. (I can't afford that.) I've also thought very seriously about swimming. The only problem is that... swimming uses feet. Feet have toes. My toes hurt. So... I don't know about that.

...we'll see. I'm hoping that I'm exponentially better by.. tomorrow.

motivation means improvement

I had a really fantastic run today. I think that the new shoes really helped. A lot. They're super light and my feet felt light and like they weren't really doing anything. It was fantastic. I ran at about a 13:30 pace for the majority of my run (like... all but one mile), which is my racing pace, so I was (and am!) really excited about it.

I was supposed to do 8 miles today. I ended up doing nine. I felt good enough to do an extra lap around my apartment complex when I got home, so I did. I walked it so that it was more of a cool down, which is where my pace really slowed down a lot. That pushed me to almost nine miles. I figured that I might as well finish out the nine, since I was already almost there. So I did.

I ended up with just over nine miles and at a 14 minute pace. I know that, under many standards, that is extremely slow, but I'm pleased. Sometimes I don't feel like going running, I don't always feel like pushing myself, but I still do it. I do feel like that is an accomplishment. I pushed it out there today. I know that I could be faster and I know that my racing speed is at least a minute quicker than my training pace. I think that if I continue to hold onto it like this, continue to push through, I'm going to improve exponentially into a runner that I want to be. I've been really focused on improving that I haven't noticed the improvements that I've made. A few months ago, an eight mile run would have made me cry and I would have run it at a 15-something pace, just because I would have taken it easy.

I'm proud of who I am becoming. I do feel like running is shaping me.
(and I kinda like it.)

Goal: 1000 miles/366 days
So far: 444.6 miles/214 days
To go: 555.4 miles/152 days

New shoes, July recap, and week 7 of training (already?!)

This is going to be an exciting post! Lots to talk about, including a July recap!

Katherine and I went to Track Shack today to do some shoe shopping. My old shoes were just not working out for me anymore. As much as I love(d) them, my feet have started to ache after I run for the past few weeks, so I knew that it was time for new shoes. I also wanted to get them broken in before I start all of the (lots of!) races that I'll be doing in the next few months.

I decided to stick with the Nike Lunarglide. Since I'm in the middle of training for Chicago and I have so many big races coming up, I don't want to confuse my feet. I'd like to try different shoes, because I'm still fairly new to running and I'd like to really get a feel for different types of running shoes in order to find out what I really like and don't like. I think that this was a good decision for right now though.

Katherine decided to get new shoes too, because her feet have been bothering her. (and who doesn't love new running shoes? Let's be honest here!) I do like the bright green-ness of the Lunarglides though. They're really fun.  

After we left with our new shoes, socks, and box of energy gels, we headed to go on a run! Today called for an "easy" four miles. It was more like a "my legs hurt like hell from my long run on Sunday, but I'm going to tough it out and do the best that I can" four mile run. We went downtown to run around Lake Eola, which we have never done before. We've been talking about running there for... a long time. By "a long time", I  mean almost for the entire two years since we moved here. So exciting!  

(i kind of love that katherine's eyes are closed. haha.)

As much as it was really tough and my legs were still a little sore and achy, I had a fun time out there today. We did four laps around the lake. It was a gorgeous course and I'm glad that I changed it up. I've been spending way too much time running the same routes lately. How lame is that? It's fun to do something new every so often.

Yay! Okay, now for the most important thing...

July Recap!!!!!

I FINALLY had another 100 mile month! This is my first 100 mile-plus month since January. I feel more like a legitimate runner now.

By 100 mile month, I mean that in July, I ran......

145.66 miles...!!! Whaaaat?! Is this real life?

In August, I really want to add in weight training. I did a little yesterday, but it's time to do more and get strength added into my routine. I'm so excited about all of the work that I've put into this. I also plan to really get my nutrition on point. Eating is one of the most important parts of the journey... but it's something that I struggle with a LOT.

Goal: 1000 miles/366 days

So far: 435.58 miles/213 days

To go: 564.42 miles/153 days